A Synopsis of Popery, as it was and as it is

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SYNOPSIS

or

POPE 11 Y,

AS IT WAS

AND

AS IT IS.

By WILLIAM HOG AN, Esq.,

■ ■

FORSaERLY ROMAN CATHOLIC PRIP.ST.

BOSTON:

PUBLISHED BY SAXTON & KELT
:NEVV YORK: SAXTON & MILES.

PIIILAOELPIIIA: (i. B. ZIEBER & ('O.

"H

1845.

*
\

H ' 'r

I

im\mmt

1:1:. KEW.tOnX

; »-.r:.;R. UNOT AN.

Entered according to Act of CongreM, in the year 1846, by

WlLLlJiM HUGAR,

In the Cierk's Office of the Diatrict Court of Masaacbuaecti.

. f ■ *

■"■■ -f

PREFACE.

In aubmitting the following pages to the public, I can
aaj, with troth, that I am actuated by no other motive
than t sincere desire to promote the interest, and con-
tribute all in my power to perpetuate the free institutions,
of this, my adopted country.

It is many years since I have had any intercourse or
eonnection, with the church or priests of Rome ; and I
Tainly imagined that, after th^ first outbreak of their
animosity, tar repudiating their doctrines, it would suc-
ceed into a calm indifference. I was aware of the cus-
tom, in that church, to defame and calumniate all who
*'went out from her;" but especially those who have
hdd any distinguished position.

Against such, appeals are immediately made to the peo-
ple by their priests, until, finally, maddened by sophistry,
fimaticism, and falsehoods, they look upon the seceder as
one whom it is their duty to destroy ; and in whose word,
honor, and virtue, no confidence is to be reposed. The
object of the Romish church, in this, cannot be mistaken.
It is too plain to escape even the least observant eye. A
lawyer who can render legally valueless the testimony of
opposing witnesses, seldom fails in establishing his case ;
and hence it is that the Romish church never fails to de-
stroy, if she can, the credibility of all who break loose from

«

X" 1

4 PREFACE.

her, knowing them to be the best witnesses of her iniquities.
But for some jears back, and until recently, the violence
of Popish priests against myself seemed to slumber.
This was natural. In the body ecclesiastic, as well as in
the natural body, a morbid excitement often succeeds a
stupor; and recently these gentlemen have assailed me
again. To apparent indifference succeeded a frantic
zeal ; and from one end of this continent to the other,
they have tried to injure me, by appeals to the public
through their presses, and especially through the con-
fessional. All this I would have disregarded, as usual,
but I find that these priests have become politicians, and
that every blow aimed at me, for the free exercise of my
judgment as to the best mode of worshipping God, is
aimed at the constitution of my adopted country, which
grants this blessing-, without let or hindrance, tp all the
children of men. ^

Well aware that Americans are not acquainted with
the designs of Popery against their country and its insti-
tutions, I feel it my duty to lay before them the following
pages. The perusal of them will satisfy every American
that our country is in danger, not so much from enemies
abroad as from foes withip. They will find that Papists
have reduced political, as well as religious corruption, to
t system, and are-, at this moment, practising it amongst
us, upon a great and gigantic scale.

THE FOLLOWING PAGES

ARB

RESPECTFULLY DEDICATED

TO

-AMERICAN REPUBLICANS,

BT

THE AUTHOR.

SYNOPSIS OF POPERY,

AS IT WAS AND AS IT IS.

When this country renounced its altegiemce to
the British crown, and proclaimed itself independent!
Popery was on the wane in Europe ; it was there
getting more sickly, more languid and feeble, until
it had little more than a mere nominal existence ;
but while its blossoms were fading, its thorns
retained their vitality, inflicting pains and wounds
on all who came in contact with them. The
Jesuits, one of the most influential orders of friars
belonging to the Roman church, continued still
active as ever in their fiendish avocations ; they
roamed about, like so many gnomes, from country
to country, and from people to people, carrying
with them, and strewing on their paths, the seeds
of moral death on all that was precious and valu-
able in the social system. Whatever they touched
was blighted; whatever they said or preached
breathed treachery ; wherever they went, vice,
crime, and duplicity marked their track. But dark
as the times were then, enshrouded as they had
been in ignorance, and idolatrous as the people
were, they began to manifest some dissatisfaction
at the machinations of Jesuits in their efforts to
acquire temporal power. They began to feel it in

8 SYNOPSIS OF POPERT,

the loss of their property, out of which they too late
saw themselves gradually swindled ; they felt it Iq
the loss of their liberty and civil rights, out of
which they had been persuaded, all for the good
OF THE CHURCH. Endurance became intolerable,
and those unhallowed agents had to be partially
suppressed.

The Popish church, at this time, seeing the
influence of her most active agents gradually
diminishing, her ancient glories fading, and her
power vanishing from her grasp; and scarcely
able to breathe any longer in the putrid atmos-
phere which her own corruption and impurities
had created, very naturally turned her eyes to-
wards this brilliant new world. It was then
young and beautiful ; it abounded in all the luxu-
ries of nature ; it promised all that was desirable to
man. The holt church, seeing these irresistible
temptations, thirsting with avarice, and yearning
for the reestablishment of her falling greatnesS|
soon commenced pouring in among its unsuspect-
ing people hordes of Jesuits and other friars, with
a view of forming among them institutions which
were already found to be destructive to the peace
and morals of all social and religious principles iu
Europe. We now see Popish colleges, and nun-
neries, and monastic institutions, springing up in
our hitherto happy republic^; and, if similar causes
continue, as they have ever done, to produce
similar eflfects, it needs no prophet's eye to see,
nor inspired tongue to tell, what the consequences
must be to posterity. Many suppose that Popery
has been modified ; that it is different now from
what it was in ancient times ; that the spirit which
actuated Papists in those dark days ceases to influ-
ence them now that the faggot, the rack, and vari-

AS IT WAS AND AS IT IS. 9

ous Other modes of torture, are not still in use in the
Roman church, and that it has long ceased to lay
claim, by divine right, to terap)oral sovereignty, or to
any other of those prerogatives which they formerly
insisted upon. There are some so fastidiously liberal
as to grant them all immunities which may be with
safety granted to other sects ; others there are, so
patriotic as to hold at defiance ail their power;
and others so self-conceited as to fancy themselves
an over-match even for Jesuits, in religious chi-
canery and political intrigue.

All this arises, not from want of true zeal in
American Protestants, but because they are unac-
quainted with the canons of 'the Romish church.
These canons are inaccessible to the majority of •
the American people, even of theologians, and with
the purport and meaning of them none but those
•who have been educated Roman Catholic priests
have much or any acquaintance. I hesitate not to
say — although I do so with the utmost respect
and deference — that there are but few American
theologians who have much acquaintance with the
doctrines or canons of the Romish church. They
form no part of their studies; a knowledge of
them is not necessary in the legitimate discharge
of their pastoral duties ; and hence it is, that in
many of their controversies with Romish priests,
they are not unfrequently browbeaten, bullied, and
often almost ignominioUsly driven from the arena
of controversy by men who, in point of general
information, virtue, piety, zeal, and scriptural
knowledge, are greatly their inferiors. He who
argues with Catholic priests must have had his
education with them ; he must be of them and
from among them. He must know, from expe-
rience, that they will stop at no falsehood where

10 SYNOPSIS OF POPERT,

the good of the church is concerned; he mast
know that they will scruple at no forgery whea
they desire to establish any point of doctrine,
fundamental or not fundamental, which is taught
by their church ; he must be aware that it is a
standing rule with Popish priests, in all their conr
troversies with Protestants, to admit nothing and
deny every thing, and that, if still driven into diffi-
culty, they will still have recourse to the archives
of the church, where they keep piles of decretals,
canons, rescripts, bulls, excommunications, inter-
dicts, &c., ready for all such emergencies ; some of
them dated from three hundred to a thousand
years before they were written or even thought of;
showing more clearly, perhaps, than anything else,
the. extreme ignorance of ' mankind between the
third and ninth centuries, when most of these
forgeries were palmed .upon the world. With the
aid of these miserable forgeries, they attempt to
prove, among other things, that the divine right of
the Pope to the sovereignty of this world was
acknowledged by the fathers of the church, in
the earliest days of Christianity.

There are to be-'found now, in the Vatican at
Rome, canons and decretals which go to show
that the Pope was considered '' equal to God," as
early as the third century. More of these impious
forgeries attempt to show that some of the most
pious fathers of the church, in the days of her
unquestioned sanctity iEUid piety, acknowledged
"Mary, the mother of Jesus, to be equal to God
the Sod, and deserved supreme adoration." With
these forged iiistruments, they attempt to show that
the primitive Christians believed in the real and,
actual presence of the whole body and blood of
Christ, in the wafer which they call the Eucharist.

▲S IT WAS AND AS IT IS. 11

Monatrous,^horrible, and impious, as these absurdi-
ties are, I once believed them myself. So much
for the prejudices of education.

The object of the following pages is to show,
first, the origin of Papal power ; secondly, to call
the attention of Americans to its rapid growth in
many of the nations of the earth ; and, thirdly, to
put my fellow citizens on their guard against
giving it any countenance or support within the
limits of the United States.

OBieiN OF THE TEMPORAL POWER OP THE POPE.

We have no authentic evidence that the bishops
or presbyters of the primitive Christian church
laid claims tb temporal power, much less to unir
versal sovereignty, such as Popes have arrogated to
themselves, in subsequent times, even down to the
present day. Constantine, as we are informed by
the best authorities, was the first to unite civil and
ecclesiastical power. He introduced Christianity
among the Romans- by civil authority. This oc-
curred between the years 272 and 337 ; but never
during his reign, nor before it, was there an in-
stance of a bishop or presbyter of the church
aspiring to temporal jurisdiction. They were poor
and persecuted ; they were meek and humble ;
they were well content with the privilege of
worshipping God in peace. The instructions of
their divine Master were fresh in their minds —
they almost still rung in their ears. They felt
that they were sent into the world with special
instructions to " preach the gospel to every crea-
ture." Their heavenly Master told them that his

12 SYNOPSIS or POPEEti

"kingdom was not of this world.'' TMy felt the
full force of that high and holy admonition, "Ren-
der to CtBsaLT the things that are Caesar's, and to
God the things that are God's." They cheerfully
submitted to the civil authorities. They claimed not
the right of giving away kingdonis, crowning em-
perors, deposing princes, and absolving their sub-
jects from their oaths cf allegiance. These pure
Christians and devout meu asked for no distinctions,
but those of virtue and zeal in the cause of Christ ;
they sought forno wealth but that of Heaven ; they
desired no crown but that of glory ; they sought
no tiara save that of martyrdom ; they were sur-
rounded by no court but that of the poor ; no col-
lege of cardinals waited on their pleasure ; there
were no nuncios sent from their court ; no foreign
ambassadors passed between them and the powers
of this earth. The only court with which they
had business to transact, and in wihich their treas-
ures were laid up, was the court of Heaven ; and
their only ambassadors at that court were the
angels of heaven, sent forth to minister unto them.
But this state of things did not last long. As a
modern writer beautifully expresses it, " the trail
of the serpent i» over us all." The Emperor
Constantine, seeing the poverty of the primitive
church, — her vast and progressive increase innum*
bers and the consequent demand upon her charities,
— granted to her bishops permission to hold prop-
erty, real and personal. This concession on the
part of Constantine, simple and trifling as it seemed
to be ; this commingling of the things of heaven
and earth, was unnatural. It coutained within
itself the principles of dissolution, or rather of entire
destruction ; and became, in time, the source from
which have sprung most o£ the wars, massacres,

AS IT WAS AMD At IT IS. 19

and bloody^ strifes, that have desolated and divided
into fragmentary sections, the richest, the fairest, and
the finest portions ol the globe, during the last fif*-
teen hundred years ; and will continue to do so,
unto the end of time, unless the advance of civili-
zatioily and the great progress which the human
mind has made in ethics, morals, and mietaphysics,
on this continent, puts an immediate check to
Popish interference -with the pcj^icy of our country.

Could we suppose an individual, who knew
nothing of ancient times ; who was An entire stran-
ger to the darkness which pervaded Europe during
the middle ages; who had no acquaintance with
the pretensions, arrogance and^ insolence of Roman
pontiffs ; who knew no other constitution and no
other laws but those of our own country ; he could
not but feel surprised at being first told, that there
now lived in Rome, an upstart ecclesiastic, called a
Pope, who has the hardihood to assert that he is
Sovereign Lord, and that too by divine right, of
these United States, as well as of all other kingdoms
of this world. He goes even further, and con-
tends that his predeceiilsors had similar divine
rights, and that all the citizens and inhabitants of
this country owed allegiance to him personally, and
to no one else, unless delegated by him to receive
it. But strange as this may appear, it is no less
true, as I will show from authorities, which cannot
be questioned, by those who claim such extravagant
immunities.

The Pope of Rome predicates his claim to uni-
versal sovereignty upon the power of loosing and
binding on earth and in heaven ; which, in the ex-
uberance of their fancy, Roman CJatholic writers
contend was given to St. Peter. Their next step
is to prove, that this siu>remacy was acknowledged

2

44 8TJBIOP8IS or POP£ET,

by the primitive fathers of the church, and cooa^
quently their rights and claims are beyond dispute.
But before L proceed to give any of the authori-
ties, upon which Roman Catholic writers rest the
antiquity of the recognition of their Pope's tem-
poral power, it may not be amiss to inform the
reader, that the very first on which they rely is one
of the most unblushing forgeries on record; and is
dated jabout six hundred years previous to the time
at which it purports to have been written. It is
taken from tfafe words of a conveyance of certain
temporal concessions, said to be made by the Em-
peror Constantino to Pope Sylvester, some time
between the secondhand third centuries. It is in
the following words :

'' We attribute to the chair of St. Peter all impe-
rial dignity, glory, and power. We give to Pope
Sylvester, and to his successors, our palace of Late-
ral!, one of the finest palaces on earth ; we give him
our crown, our mitre, our diadetn, and all our im-
perial vestments ; we resign to him all our imperial
dignity. We give the Holy Pontiflfj as a free gift,
the city of Rome, and all the western cities of
Italy, as well as the western cities of other countries.
To make room for him, we abdicate our sovereignty
over all these provinces, and we withdraw from
Rome, transferring the seat of our empire to Byzan-
tium ; since it is not just that a terrestrial emperor
shall retain any power where God has placed the
head of the church."

It would be a waste of time to show that no such
donation as the above ever existed. No mention is
made of it in any history of the Popes that has ever
been written, or in any other document which had»
reference to them during the reign of Constantino.
It is a forgery so shallow, uyeal, and unsubstantial,

AS rr WIS AND AS IT is. tS

that there is no well-edacated historian, and never
has been one, who gave it any credence. The his-
torian Flewry pronounces it a falsehood ; and he,
being a Roman Catholic, must be considered
good authority upon all matters relating to the
holy church. The quotation, howerer, from this
supposed deed of concession, by Constantine to
Pope Sylvester, is not without instruction to the
citizens of this country. It should arouse them to
a^ sense of the dangers which are hovering over
them. / It should remind them that every thing is

Krishable. The fairest flower must fade ; the love-
st lily must wither ; the laughing rose must droop ;
even our fair republic may lose its bloom, and
pass away. A state of things may arise in this
country, when its executive may be a Papist, its ju-
-diciary Papists, and a majority of its population may
be Papists. These things are not beyond the range
oi possibility ; and are you sure that your own de-
scendants, and those of the pilgrim fathers, may not,
one day or other, give this republic as a free gift to
the head of the Papal church ? You are now strong
— so was Rome. Your power is now irresistible —
so was that of Rome and other countries. Your
arms are invincible — so were those of Rome. You
are now distinguished all over the world, for. your
progress in the arts and sciences ; the world looks
to you as models of patriotism and pure republican-
ism — so did the world once look to Rome. But
what is Rome now, and what drove her from the
high position she once occupied ? I will tell you ; —
the intrigues of the Popish church. And a similar
hxjt awaits you, unless yon cut ofi' all connection,
(Vf whatever name, between the citizens of the
United States and the church of Rome. While
this sink of iniquity bftathes, it will carry witH it
destruction and death wherever it goeth.^

10 STNOP8IS or POPEET,

We hare had several histories of the Popes, and
the first mention made of donations to them, at
least of any comparative value, is by Anastasius, who
wrote about the beginning of the tenth century, or
a little before the close of the ninth. He informs
us that Charlemagne conferred upon the Holy See
(as that hotbed of iniquity is impiously, even at
the present day, called) whole provinces^ and ac-
knowledged that they belonged to the Pope by
divine right ; though it is well understood, and de*
nied by no competent historian, that Charlemagne
never even owned these provinces. It is well
known to the readers of history, that there existed
no empire of any extent, but that of the East, until
the beginning of the eighth century. Charlemagne
assumed the title of King of Italy, in the year eight
hundred. He received homage from the Pope, and
•o far from being subject to him, he acknowledged
no divine right in him ; but on the contrary, he held
the Pope in strict subjection to himself. He even
went so far as to prohibit the Holy See from receiv-
ing donations of ar^y kind, when given without
the consent or to the prejudice of those who had
just and equitable claims to them.

This, if there were no other proof, is sufficient
to show that neither the Popes nor the Holy See
had any pretensions to universal supremacy, or to
supremacy of any kind, as far down as the eighth
century. It will not be denied that the civil au-
thorities of Rome were liberally disposed towards
the Popes or fathers of the chiurch in the early
days of Christianity. The Emperor Theodosius
the Great, who died in the year three hundred and
ninety five, recommended to all his subjects to pay
" a due respect to the See of Rome." Talentian
IIL commanded his subjects ^^nat to depart from

18 IT WAS AND A8 IT 18. 17

ihe faith and customs of the Holy See.^^ It will
however be borne in mind, that this Yalentian was
acknowledged emperor at the age of six, and bis
affairs were managed principally by his mother.
So dissipated were his habits, that he finally fell
a victim to them. But up to this period there is no
evidence whatever that the Popes either claimed or
exercised temporal authority.

About this time several councils met for the pur-
pose of adjusting disputes that arose between the
sons of the successor of Charlemagne, who unwisely,
as historians suppose, divided his empire into three
equal parts anong them. It was at one of these
councils, that the doctrine of the divine right of
Popes to temporal authority was first broached by the
production of some of those forged documents to
which I have heretofore alluded. Pope Gregory the
Fourth took an active part in fomenting the dissen-
sions which necessarily arose from the division which
the successor of Charlemagne had made of his em-
pire among his sons. The Pope, with that craft
peculiar to all ecclesiastics of the Roman Catholic
denominations, was active in widening the breach
between father and sons, and having effected this
to his content, his next move was to sow further
dissensions between the sons themselves, and finally
to create such a general confusion and dissatisfac-
tion- among all parties, as to render a mediator ne-
cessary. Having attained his object, he offered his
services to the Imperial Father, and it was accepted.
He presented himself at his camp, obtained an
entrance, and what were the consequences ? His-
tory tells the tale — it was a tale of treachery.

This serpent, clothed in his pontificals, enters the
camp, tampers with the chief officers of the empe-
ror's army, absolves them from all further allegiance

2*

18 8TM0PSIS OF POPEET,

to him, and promises them forgiveness both here
and hereafter. Some adherents of the emperofi
indignant at this conduct of the Pope, remonstrated
with him^ and what was his answer? ''Know
you," said this insolent Pope, addressing himself to
the people, '' that my chair is above the chair of
the emperor." But this Pope did no more than
every succeeding one would have done under simi-
lar circumstances. If we look back to the page of
history, from the present period to the dajrs of Char-
lemagne, Louis Debonaire, and Gregory the Fourth,
we shall find that it has been an invariable practice
with the Roman See to sow dissensions and dis-
union in every government where it has obtained
a footing, with the ultimate view of its final over-
throw and subjecting it to Popish vassalage.

Americans will bear in mind that Roman Catho-
lics believe their church to be infallible ; that she
never changes; that what was deemed right by
her in the days of Gregory and those of his imme-
diate successors, is right now, and, vice versa^ what
she deems right now was right then. In a word,
the church of Rome is infallible. This is believed
by every one of her members at the present day. It
is taught by every Popish bishop and priest in the
United States.

The following curse is contained in the Roman
Catholic Bbeviart, in which, every Romish priest
reads his prayers three times every day. '' Qut
dicit ecdesicmb catkglicam Romanam nonesse infal-
libilem, anathema sit — Whoever says that the Ro-
man Catholic church is not infallible, let him be
accursed." Such Is the belief of every Roman
Catholic. Will not Protestant Americans pause
and reflect for a moment ? The population of the
United States is about twenty millions, *and about

AS IT WAS AND A8 IT IS. 19

two millions are Papists. Consequently, seventeen
millions and a half of our people are accursed and
damned, according to the doctrine of the Rombh
ritual ; and yet we PIrotestants are called upon to ex-
tend the hand of friendship to these Papists, and our
legislators are asked to grant them charters to build
colleges, churches, nunneries, and monk-houses, not
for the purpose of teachirig the growing genera-
tion the revealed will of God, as read in the Scrip-
tures, but to persuade them that all other religions,
except that of Rome, are erroneous ; that their pa-
rents, brothers, and sisters, are heretics, accursed
forever, and by implication entitled to no allegiance
from them.

The Pope is now Setting on foot a movement
Avhich is intended to embrace the whole world, and
of which he desires Rome to be the sole representa-
tive, centre, and circumference. The powers of
the Pope have met with several severe shocks since
the Reformation. His forces have been broken, his
armies of Jesuits, his friars of all orders, Dominicans,
Franciscans, and Capuchins, have been scattered and
enfeebled. He determined to arm himself afresh,
and this new world appeared to him as the safest
ground on which he could unite his scattered forces
in Europe. This he well knows cannot be done,
ivithout throwing some fire-brand of dissensioh
among our people, which at this moment he is try-
ing to effect ; and which nothing but the resistance
offered to. him by American Republicans can
check or prevent.

On the continuance, strength, and union of this
party, depend^ the stability of our government.
This the Romish priests and bishops well know,
and are beginning to feel i and hence they are de-
nouncing them from their pulpits, and in all their

nnforniB or rapmntf

tt re tw i . But no Protestant opposes this pBxty^
Why call it a party? It is no party. It is but
the spontaneous m'0T9 of the good and the yirtuous
of all parties who love their God, their Bibles,' and
their country, and upon whose strong arm and bold
hearts rests the question whether Americans shall
be free or the slaves of his royal holiness the Pope
of Rome. Often have I lifted my voice, a feeble
one, indeed, in favor of American Kq^ublicans. 1
believe their cause is the cause of God and freedom,
and upon them every American and every Proles'
tant foreigner must rely for protection against the
merciless spirit of Popery.

It requires no stretch of imagination to fancy a
difference of opinion, or even of interest, between
the citizens of this country. Suppose, for insfanee,
that the North and South were at variance ,- suppose
them actually at war with each other; what would
be the course of the Pope^s emissaries, hmidreds
of whom- are now roaming through this land ? The
safest course and the surest mode of ascertaining
what they would do in such an event, is to look back
and ascertain what they have invariably done under
similar circumstances. It is seldom wrong, and as
a general principle it is safe, to judge of the future
from the past ; and if so, there can be no doubt of
the course which Jesuits and Roman Catholics
would pursue in the event of any difficulties or
collisions between the people of the different sec*
tions of this country. Would they try to reconcile
them ^ Did they ever do so in a like case ? What
was the conduct of the Jesuits and Popes as early
as the eleventh century, when the Roman people
differed in opinion as to their form of government,
and some points of religious faith ? The Pope laid
an interdict upon the whole people; the weaker

AS IT WAS -AND AS IT fS. %1

party was overpowered by the Papal authorities;
and their leader, as Flewry informs us, was burned
alive by order of the Pope Adrian. Frederick,
called Barbarossa, who was the tool of the Pope on
this occasion, became the next victim to his bar*
barity. And why ? what had he done ? what crime
did he commit against the state ? His only crime
was, — he refused to hold the Pope's stirrup. For
this he incurred the displeasure of Adrian, nor did
he ever enjoy a day's peace until the Pope seduced
him into an expedition against Saladin ; Adhere, to*
gether with thousands of others, who were per-
suaded to undertake that religious crusade, he died
after .several hard fought victories.

The history of the Popes, in all ages, shows that
tfiey never abandon any temporal or spiritual au-
thority to which they lay claim ; and had they the
power of enforcing it, now, they would exact from
this country the same obedience which they did in
the most benighted days of the middle ages. Should
a separation of these States take place ; should the
chain that has bound us together for the last half cen-
tury, in links of love and social happiness, be unfor-
tunately broken, by any untoward circumstances ;
think you, fellow citizens, that foreign Papists in this
country would try to re weld it ? Far from it. They
would unite in breaking it, link by link, until not a
particle of it remained. This they have done in
every country where they obtained a footing ; this
they are doing now, under various pretences, all over
Europe ; and should this country escape the fate of
others, wiiere Jesuits and Popes dare to exercise
their supposed authorities, it will stand prominent
and proudly, though solitary and alone, amid the
records of ages, and ruins of time. I have no such
hope. The efforts which are now making to check

SZ fTifOFsis or-FOFEinr,

the progress of Popery, may, perhaps, retard the
day of our downfEill ; but come it must, unless the
allegiance, which is now demanded by the Pope of
Rome from his subjects in the United States, is an-
qualified) y forbidden. The Pope is a temporal
prince. Like other kings and princes, he should
never be permitted to meddle, directly or indirectly,
temporally or spiritually, with this country. He
ibould not be permitted to appoint bishop or
jh'iest to any church, diocese, living, or office in the
Uiiited Spates. The Pope's bulls, rescripts, letters,
d&c., &c., should not be published or read from any
pulpit this side of the Atlantic ; and, though Roman
Catholics should not be prevented from the free
exercise of their religion, they should be coinpelled
to do so without reference to foreign dictation. If
they must have a Pope, let him be an American,
and sworn to support our constitution. Let him,
and all Roman Catholics, be denied the right of
voting, or of holding any office of honor, profit, or
trusty under the government of the United States,
until they forswear all allegiance, in spiritual as
well as temporal affafrs, to all foreign potentates
and Popes. Until -this is done, an oath of allegiance
to this government, by a Roman Catholic, is enti-
tled to no credit, and should not be received. This
will appear evident to Americans,, if they will turn
their attention for a moment to the following oath,
which is taken by every Romish bishop, before he
is permitted to officiate, as such, in any of these
United States : —

"I do solemnly swear, on the holy evangelist,
and before Almighty Qod, to defend the domains of
St. Peter against every aggressor ; to preserve, aug^
ment, and extend, the rights, honors, privileges, and
powers of the Lobb Popc, and his succesitors ; to

AS IT WAS AipO AS IT 18.

observe, and with all my might to enforce, his de*
crees, ordinances, reservations, provisions, and all
dispositions whatever, emanating from the court or
Rome ; to persecute and combat, to the last extremity ^
heretics, scUmatics, and all who will not pay to the
sovereign pontiff all the obedience which the sove^
reign shall require."

While this oath is obligatory upon Romish bish*
ops, they are not to be trusted. They^should not
be permitted to interfere, directly nor indirectly,,
with the institutions, laws, or ordinances df an^
Protestant country. Their oaths should not be
taken in courts of justice ; their followers, every
one of whom is bound by a similar oath of alle«
giance, should be excluded from our grand juries,
from our petit juries, but more especially^ from
our halla of legislation ; for wherever and whenever
the supposed interest of the Pope clashes with that
of the civil authority, or even with the adminis-
tration of reciprocal justice, a Papist, under the
control of his bishop, will not hesitate to sacrifice
the good of the country, the interest, life, and pros-
perity of his fellow-being, for the .good of the
church. Of the truth of this, history abounds
with examples, and Popish writers are replete with
authorities.

Thomas Aquinas, whose authority no Roman
Catholic questions, says in his work de Regem.^
" The Pope, as supreme king of all the world, may
impose taxes and destroy towns and castles for
the preservation of Christianity." The American
reader will bear in mind, that by Christianity, St.
Thomas means Popery. Pope Gregory the Seventh,
about the year one thousand and fifty, has made
use of the following language, and proclaimed it as
the doctrine of the Romish Church. '^ The Pope

S4 8TN0PSIS OF POPERY,

ought to be called ITiiiversal Bishop. He alone
ought to wear the tokens of imperial dignity ; all
princes ought to kiss his feet; he has power to
depose emperors and kings, and is to be judged by
none." Pope John the Twelfth, in the year nine
hundred and fifty-six, announced the following to
be the universal belief, that ** Whosoever shall ven-
ture to maintain that our lord the Pope cannot
decree what he pleases, let him be accursed."
Pope Bonifice the Eighth, in 1294, declares, ex
cathedra, " that God has set Popes over kings and
kingdoms, and whoever thinks otherwise declares
him accursed." The same Pope, in another place,
says, ** We therefore declare, say, define, and pro-
nounce it to be necessary to salvation, that every
human creature should be obedient to the Roman
pontiff." The Pope of the present day, as every
Roman Oatholic writer maintains and teaches the
laity to believe, has the same power riotp that the
Popes had at any period of church history.

The council of Trent, the last held in the
Popish church, declares that Pius the Fifth, who
was then Pope of Rome, " was prince over all
nations and kingdoms, having power to pluck up,
destroy, scatter, ruin, plant, and build." Cardinal
Zeba, a sound theologian according to Popish,
belief, maintains, with much ingenuity, "that the
Pope can do all things which he wishes, and is
empowered by God to do many things which he
himself cannot do." All writers upon canon
law compliment the Pope by calling him our Lord
the Pope, and this title was confirmed to him by
the council of Lateran. In the fourth session of
that council, it is maintained "that all mortals are
to be judged by the Pope, and the Pope by nobody
at all." Massoniiis, who wrote the life of Pope

AS IT WAS AND AS IT IS. 8C

John the Ninth, tells us that a bishop of RomOi
namely, a Pope, cannot commit even sin without
praise." I

Were there no other reproach upon the Romish
phurch but the bare utterance of such blasphemy
as this, it would be enough to disgust mankind;
it should raise every voice in her condemnatioui
and every hand to pull down this masterpiece of
Satanic ingenuity. But strange as it may appear,
the present Pope maintains similar claims, and
enforces obedience ; nay, niDre ; — in this year of
our Lord, 1845, insists upon the right of de[X)sing
all in power, and of absolving their subjects from
further allegiance.

But, extravagant as Papal pretensions were be-
tween the ninth and tenth centuries, it was only
about the middle of the eleventh that they begam
to show themselves in the full blaze of their hide-
ous deformity. Hildebrand, whom we have had oc-
casion to mention 86; Gregory the Seventh, shook off
all civil restraint, and proclaimed the universal and
unbounded empire of the Popes over the rest of the
world.

As Shoberl expresses it, ^^ he caused to be drawn
up a declaration of independence in all things,
temporal and spiritual, expressly specifying the
Pope's divine right of deposing all princes, giving
away all kingdoms, abrogating existing laws, and
substituting in their place such as the holy Pope for
the time being may approve of." This declaration,
or bill of rights, is correctly translated by Sho-
berl, and published in his work, entitled, " TJje Rise
and Progress of the Papal Power." Many, proba-
bly, may read this volume, who have had no oppor-
tunity of seeing Shoberl's work ; and others there
are, who may refuse giving his statement that

3

86 SYNOPSIS or popert,

credence which circumstances compel them to give
the writer.

Having been educated a Roman Catholic priest,
and the fact being well known that admission can-
not be had into her priesthood without being well
versed, at least in her Own doctrines, it is fairly to
be presumed that my statements are entitled to full
credit, when those of Protestants may be denied
by Romish priests, who, while united with that
church, are compelled, under pain of being cursed,
to subscribe to any falsehood, however gross, pro-
vided it subserves the interest of the^ Pope ; and
deny any truth, however plain, rather than contra-
dict or weaken the authorities by which the impi-
ous follies and wicked pretensions of the church of
Rome are supported. I will give this bill of rights
to my readersw It should be in the hands of every
American. . It should find a place in every primary
school in the United States. It should be among
the first lessons of infancy, so that every child,
when he grows up and sees a Roman Catholic
bishop or priest, should pause and ask himself, Does
that man believe those things ? Are we called on
to pass laws for the support and protection of
churches, where such doctrines, as this hill contains,
are promulgated ? Can we trust the man who pro*
* mulgates them, or those who subscribe to them ?
Is it safe to live in the same community with them ?
Do they not endanger our civil institutions ? Do
they not jeopardize the morals of our children?
Will it not, at some future day, be a blot upon the
page o( our history, and a foul stain upon our char-
acter for intelligence, that we have ever sanctioned
such doctrines, or that we had ever allowed men
who professed them, any participation in our civil

AS IT WAS AND AS IT IS. S7

rights ? But l,et Pope Gregory's declaration of Papal
divine rights speak for itself.

'' The Romish church is the only one that God
has founded.

^' The title of universal belongs to the Roman
pontiff alone.

^^ He alone can depose and absolve bishops.

'^ His legate presides over all the bishops in ev-
^ry council, and may pronounce sentence of deposi-
tion against them.

"The Pope can depose absent persons.

" It is not lawful to live with such as have been
eoccommunicated.

" He has the* power, according to circumstances,
to make new laws, to create new churches, to trans-
form a chapter into an abbey, and to divide a rich
bishopric into two, or to unite two poor bishoprics.

" He alone has a right to assume the attributes
of empire.

" All princes must kiss his feet.

" His name .is the only one to be uttered in the
churches.

" It is the only name in the world.

" He has a right to depose emperors.
. " He has a right to remove bishops from one* see
f o another. ,

" He has a right to appoint a clerk [priest] qi
every church. *

" He, whom he has appointed, may govern an-
other church, and cannot receive a higher benefice
from any private bishop.

" No council can call itself general without tile
order of the Pope. * :

" No chapter, no book, can be reputed canonical*
without his authority. •

i

88 SYNOPSIS OF FOFE/BTj

"No one can inralidate his sentences; he can
abrogate those of all other persons.

" He cannot be judged by any one.

" All persons whatsoever are forbidden to pre-
sume to condemn him who is called to the apostol-
ical chair.

" To this chair must be brought the more impor-
tant causes of all the churches.

" The Roman church is never wrong, and wiH
never fall into error.

" Every RouMin pontiff, canonically ordained, be-
comes holy.

" It is lawful to accuse when he permits, or when
he commands^

"He may, without synod, depose and absolve
bishops.

" He is no Catholic who is not united to the
Romish church.

" The Pope can release the subjects of bad jNrinces
from all oaths of allegiance."

Those who have not been educated Roman Cath-
olics, or who have not lived in Catholic countries,
will find it difficult to suppose that such pretensions
ais the above should ever have been entertainsd or
submitted to : extravagant, absurd, wild, and wick-
ed as they are, they have been acquiesced in by
the court of Rome ; and are, at this day, contended
for, and would be enforced, in this country, had that
church ^he power to do so. She has n^ver resigned
the rights claimed in the above declaration; and
there is not a Roman Catholic who dares assert the
contrary, without a dispensation from his bishop or
his priest to tell a deliberati falsehood, with a view
of deceiving Americans for the good of the church.
This, however, they can always obtain and grant
to each other, as circumstances may require.

^ AS IT WAS ANO AS IT IS. Hi

While a Roman Catholic priest, I have often re-
ceived and given such incmlgences myself; and
there is not a period in the Christian world, since
the days of Pope Gregory, when all the powers and
prerogatives, enumerated in the above Papal bill of
rights, were not claimed and acted upon by Popes
of Rome, down to the hour at which I write. Let
us test the truth of this assertion by the unerring
rule of history, although it may seem unnecessary,
as no Roman Catholic will deny it ; at any rate, it
■ will not be questioned by those who have any ac-
quaintance with the history of their own church.
I am well aware that the majority of Roman Cath-
olics in this country know nothing of the religion
which they profess, and for which they are willing
to fight, contend, and shed the blood of their fellow
beings. I am npt even hazarding an assertion, when
I say there is not one of them who has read the
gospels through, or who knows any more about
the religion he professes, than he does about the
Koran of Mohammed. . He is told by the priest,
" that Christ established a church on earth ;, that it
is infallible ; and that they must submit implicitly
to what its popes, priests, and bishops teach, under
pain of eternal damnation." This is all the great
mass of Roman Catholics know of religion ; this is
all they are required to learn ; and hence it is that
these people are unacquainted with the pretensions of
the Pope, the intrigues .of Jesuits, or the impositions
practised upon them by their bishops and priests.

But to the history of Papal pretensions. As early
as the year 1066, Gregory, who was then Pope,
summoned William the Conqueror, king of Eng-
land, to repair to Rome, prostrate himself upon his
knees, and do homage to his holiness. This
William refused ; but his holiness deemed it expe-

3*

30 SYNOPSIS or FOPERT,

dient to compromise the matter, though he did not
yield a jot of his very modest pretensions This
humble follower of the Redeemer looked upon Sar-
dinia and Russia as a portion of his dominions.
The following extract of a letter of his, to the sove-
reign of Ru&sia, is a fair sample of the insolence
of this man Pope, or rather this God Pope, as his
subjects considered him. '^ We have given you a
crown to your son, who is to come and to receive
it at our hands on taking an oath of allegiance to
us." He also commanded the emperor of Greece
*' to abdicate his crown," and he also deposed the
king of Poland. This modest Pope wrote to the
different princes of Spain, '' that it would be much
better to give up their country to the Saracens, than
not pay homage to the See of Rome." He excom-
municated Philip the First of France, because he
refused to "pay homage to him." Writing to the
French bishops, he says, " Separate yourselves from
the communion of Philip ; let the celebration of the
holy mass be interdicted throughout all France ;
and know that, with the assistance of God, we will
deliver that kingdom from such an oppressor."
This same Pope excommunicated Henry the Fourth,
'^ because he refused to acknowledge him as his
superior," and absolved his subjects from their oath
of allegiance to him : and what was the result ?
Henry was obliged to submit. Having repaired to
the Pope's court, he was stopped at the entrance,
»and before he was permitted to appear in the pres-
ence of this ruffian Pope, who was then shut up
with Matilda, countess of Tuscany, one of the
numerous women with whom he lived on terms
of intimacy, he was compelled to undress and put
on a hair shirt. The Pope then condescended to
say, " that Henry should fast three days, before he

AS IT WAS AND AS IT IS. 31

could be pormitted to kiss his holiness's toe ; and
he would then absolve him upon promise of good
behavior."

Alexander the Third, about the year 1160, de*
posed Frederic First, Jcing of Denmark ; and placing
his foot upon his neck, he impiously exclaimed,
" Thou shalt tread upon the lion and the adder."
This practice and these pretensions to sovereign
power, continued down to the days of Elizabeth ;
and from thence down to the present moment.
Pope« Pius y. excommunicated Elizabeth, and ab-
solved her subjects from their oath of allegiance ;
and while doing so, addressed to himself the fol-
lowing words from the Psalmist : '^ See, I have this
day set thee over the nations, and over the king-
doms, to root out and to pull down, to destroy, to
build up, and to throw down." More of this here-
after.

Such were the doctrines of the Romish church
in 1558. Such were the practices of that church
for centuries previous ; nor is there one single in-
stance on record of her having modified or abridged
the extent or magnitude of her claims, unless when
compelled to dcTso by coercion ; and even then she
did not abandon her claim, but only ceased to ex-
ercise it in obedience to the law offeree. The Rom-
ish church, in this country, as I shall show, claims
the same temporal powers now which she has al-
ways claimed and exercised for so many centuries.
She would now depose the executive of this country,
as she did Philip of France, if she dared do so.
The Pope would absolve our citizens from their
oath of allegiance, had he the power of carrying
his dispensation into effect ; and what is the duty
of Americans under such circumstances 7 Are you
to submit passively ? Is it your duty to wait and

82 8TNOP8I8 or POPERT,

•

witness the growth of Popery among you, to nour-
ish and feed it with the life blood of your existence
as a nation, until the monster outgrows your own
strength and strangles you, to satiate its inordinate
appetite ? I lay it down as a sound principle in
political as well as moral ethics, that if a govern*
ment finds, within the limits of its jurisdiction, any
sect or party, of whatever doctrine, creed, or denom-
ination, professing principles incompatible with its
permanency, or subversive of the unalienable right
of self government, and worshipping God, according
to the dictates of each and every man's conscience,
that sect or party should be removed beyond its
limits, or at least excluded from any participation
in the formation or administration of its laws.

Would it, for instance, be wise in our govern-
ment to encourage the Mormons to introduce
among us^ as the law of the land, the ravings and
prophesies of Joe Smith ? Suppose that sect main-
tained that Joe Smith was their Lord God ; that the
kingdoms of this world were his ; that he claimed
and did actually exercise the right of dethroning
kings, and was endeavoring, by every means in his
power, to place himself in a position to exercise, at
no distant period, the right of deposing our presi-
dents, state governors, and absolving our people
from their oaths of allegiance. Should not that
sect, as such, be instantly crushed 7 Should it not,
at least, be forbidden to interfere, directly or indi-
rectly, with our civil institutions ? Let us suppose
the prophet Joe Smith to hold the seat of his gov-
ernment in Europe, and that Europe was full to
overflowing with Mormons ; we may further sup-
pose this great high priest to have thousands and
millions of subordinate oflicers, sworn and bound
together by oaths cemented in blood, to sustain

AS IT WAS AND AS IT IS. 33

him as their sovereign ruler, by every means which
human ingenuity could devise, and at every sacri^*
fice of truth and honor. Suppose, further, that
this high priest was annually sending thousands
of his subjects to this country, with no other view
but to possess your fertile lands and overthrow
your government, and substituting in its place that
of this foreign priest and tyrant ; would you per-
mit them to land upon your shores ? Would you
allow them to pollute the purity of your soil?
Would you allow their unclean hands to touch
the altars of your liberty? Would you not first
insist that they should purge themselves from the
sins and ^ime of Mormonism, and free themselves
from all further connection with this monster man,
and would-be God, who impiously demanded blind
obedience and unqualified homage? I could an-
swer for you, but I will not ; the history of your
republic answers for you ; the movements, which
are now going forth frompne end of your country
to the other, are' answering for you, in tones too
solemn and too loud to be drowned by the roaring
of Popish bulls. But it is much to be feared that
Americans do not yet fully understand the dangers
to be apprehended from the existence of Popery
in the United States. .It is difficult to persuade a
single-hearted and single-minded republican, whose
lungs were first inflated by the breath of freedom,
whose first thoughts were, that all men had a nat-
ural right to worship God as they pleased — that
any man could be found, so lost to reason, interest,
and principle, as to desire to barter those high priv-
ileges, which he may enjoy in this country, for
oppression and blind submission to the dictates of
a Pope, or even any body of men, civil or ecclesi-
astic ; still less can an American believe, without

34 STROPSis or fortMt,

\

m

difficulty, that he who sees the excellence and^
practical operation of our form of government, wilL
try to overthrow it, by submitting to any creed,
to any king or Pope, who requires from him alte-
giance, incoinpatible with that which he has
• already sworn to maintain. Nor, generally speak*
ing, will men do those things.

While man believes in the moral obligations of
an oath, he will not easily violate it. While he
believes that there is an all-seeing Providence^ to
whom alone he is accountable for his actions, he
will be cautious in committing offences ; but once
satisfy a man, that there is, within his reach, a power
which can pardon his sins, even those of perjury ;
which can change abstract evil into good, and he will
stop at nothing. While the pardon of offences is w
marketable article, it never will want for a purchaser^
so prone are we to the commission of crime^ Let
man have an adviser, in whom he is taught to
place unlimited confidence, on whom he Iqoks as
the representative of his God on earth, and he
soon becomes his ready tool for good or for evil.
Such precisely is the position in which ninety-nine
out pf a hundred Roman Catholics are placed.
They are told by their priests, that, as members of
society, the first allegiance they owe is to the
head of their church, the Pope of Rome, and the
next to the government, de facto, under which they
live; but these well-practised ecclesiastical im-
postors never forget to add, that the first alle^
giance, being of a spiritual character, absorbs and
supersedes the latter ; thus annulling, and render-
ing the oath of allegiance, which they take to our
government, something worse than even mere
mockery; and hence it is, that very few Catho-
lics, particularly the Irish, ever read the constitu-

AS IT WA8 AND A8 IT IS. 35

tioQ of the United States, nor do they require it to
he read for them, ^hey know not, they c€ure not
what it is. It is enough for them'to believe that
the oath, which they take to support it, is not obli-^
gatory. Of this they are assured by their priests.
Yet strange, these very priests tell them they com-
mit mortal sin by becoming Freemasons, or uniting
themselves with that excellent and benevolent
association, the Odd Fellows. And why, reader, do
they do this? Why prevent them from uniting
with Odd Fellows or Freemasons? Why has the
Pope recently cursed all Odd Fellows ? Why
has he sent a bull to this country, cautioning Cath-
olics against havinf any thing to do with them ?
Why have the Romish priests, from one end of this
country to the other, echoed these curses? Did
the Pope discover any bad thing in the constitu-
tion or rules of action of Freemasons or Odd Fel-
lows ? Are these institutions aiming at the over-
throw of any fixed principles in morals, in religion,
or in virtue ? No such allegation is made. Why
then do Popes and priests forbid Roman Catholics
from uniting with them ? It is expressly because
the Pope knows nothing about those excellent
institutions. It is because he is aware he can
make no use of them; but let those societies
beware, if they wish to keep their secrets. They
should nol; allow any man to join them until
he first swears that he is not a Roman Catholic ;
otherwise some- Jesuits will get among them, and
the next packet will convey their doings to his
rojral holiness the Pope.

I cannot illustrate more clearly the value which
foreign Roman priests and their followers put upon
an oath of allegiance to this government, than
by stating a conversation which occurred between

BTMOPSIS OF POPEUr,

myself and a Jesuit, the Rev. Dr. De Barth, then
Ticar-general of the diocese of Pennsylvania, and
residing in Philadelphia. It took place some years
ago, and his opinion of the validity of an oath of
allegiance to this government, is the same now that
is held by all Papists. 1 will give it by way of
question and answer, just as it occurred.

Question by Mr. De Barth. Do jrou intend
becoming a citizen of the United States ?

Answer. I believe not, sir. I don't think I
could conscientiously take an oath of allegiance to
this government, without violating that which I
have taken at my ordination.

Mr. De B. You are entirely mistaken. Any
part of your oath of allegiance to this country,
which may be incompatible with your first and
greater allegiance to the head of your church,
cannot be binding on you.

Ans. I have doubts upon that subject.

Mr. De B. What ! doubt your superior, sir ?
This looks badly. It threatens heresy. Have yon
been conversing with any heretics of this coun-
try? Declare your intentions, sir, to beccmie
a citizen. Take the oath; it is necessary yon
should be empowered to hold real estate for the
good of the church. The church must have her
property out of the hands of trustees ; in this coun-
try they are all heretics ; we must get rid of them
in St. Mary's church.

This led me into aa examination of the alle-
giance which I swore to the Pope at my ordination.
I found that I owed him none ; that I was the dupe
of an early education ; that I owed allegiance only to
my God and the country which protected my life,
my liberty,^ and my freedom of conscience ; and
without further conversation with this intriguing

AS IT WAS AHD AS IT tS« 87

and debauched Jesuit-— as I subsequently found
him — I became a citizen of the United States as
soon as possible ; renouncing all allegiance, tem-
poral and spiritual, to his holiness the Pope ; and
firmly resolved to induce all others, who,*like myself,
had been the dupes of Popish intrigue, to cut loose
from them. I determined to support no civil con-
stitution but that of the United States, and to have
no one for my ]^uidance in spiritual matters but
my own conscience and the word of God.

fOflSH BISHOPS AND PUE8T8 ABSOLVE ALLE&IANCE TO

PROTESTANT 60TEKN1EHTS.

I am aware of the difficulty there is in persuad-
ing Protestant Americans, that Roman Catholic
bishops and priests teach their people to believe,
that they^ the priests, possess the power of absolv-
ing them, either from their oath of allegiance or
any other crime. It is, however, time to speak
' ^ plainly to Americans. It is time to let them know
that there exists in the midst of them a body of
people, amounting in number to about two millions,
who believe in this doctrine, so corrupt in itself,
and so well: calculated to disturb the peace aqd har-
mony of society. There is not a priest or bishop
in the United States who dares deny this ; they act
upon it every day. It .is customary with the
priests to confess weekly, and to forgive each other's
sins ; and I am sorry to say, from my knowedge of
them, since my infancy to the present Inoment, that
there is not a more corrupt, licentious body of men
ia the world. But I will not be judge, accuser, and
witness, in this case. I know well that Americans

4

SYNOPSIS or FOFKRT, •*

will take the ipse dixit of no man. They are not
m the habit of lightly judging any^ individual' or
body of men, in any case* 1 will,' therefoie, lay
before them the Roman Catholic doctrine on the
subject of penance and confession, as taught by the
council of Trent, and now believed and practised
by Roman Catholics in the United States. I will
only add, that I have taught these doctrines mysetf,
when a Roman Catholic priest, and while groping
my way through the darkness of Popery. There
are many now living who heard and received them
from me, and to whom I have no apology to make
for the errors into which I led them, except that,
like themselves, I was the dupe of early edncation*
The following are some of the canons of the
council of Trent concerning penance or confession :

" Whoever shall say, that those words of the
Lord and Saviour : Receive the Holy Ghost ; whose
sins you shall forgive, they are forgiven tkem, and
y)hose sins you shall retmn^ they are retained ; are
not to be understood of the power of remitting and
retaining sins in the sacrament of penance, as the
Catholic church has always understood, from the
beginning ; but shall falsely apply them against the
institution of this sacrament, to the authority of
preaching the gospel ; let him be accursed !

<* Whoever shall deny that sacramental confession
has either been instituted by divine command^ or is
necessary to salvation ; or shall say that the mode
of secretly confessing to a priest alone, which the
Catholic church always has observed from the
beginning, and still observes, is foreign from the
institution aAd command of Christ, and is a human
invention ; let him be accursed !

" Whoever shall affirm, that in the sacrament of
penance, it is not necessary by divine command, for

AS IT WAS AND AS IT IS. 39

the remission of sins, to confess all and every
mortal sin, of which recollection may he bad, with
due and diligent premeditation, including secret
offences, and those which are against the two last
precepts of the decalogue, and the circumstances
which change the species of nn : but that this
confession is useful onl^ for the instruction and
consolation of the penitent, and was anciently ob-
served, only as a canonical satisfaction imposed
upon him ; or shall say, that they who endeavor
to confess all their sins, wish to leave nothing for
the divine mercy to pardon ; or finally, that it is
not proper to confess venial sins; let him be
accursed !

''Whoever shall say, that the confession of all
sins, such as the church obsejrves, is impossible,
and that it is a human tradition, to be abolished by
the pious ; or that ail and every one of Christ's
faithful, of both sexes, are not bound to observe it
once in the year, according id the constitution of
the great Lateran council, and that for this reason,
Christ's faithful should be advised not to confess in
the time of Lent ; let him be accursed !

" Whoever shall say, that the sacramental abso-
lution of the priest is not a judicial act, but a mere
ministry to pronounce and declare, that sins are
remitted to the person making confession, provided
that he only believes that he is absolved, even
though the priest should not absolve seriously, but
in joke ; or shall say, that the confession of a peni'
tent is not requisite, in order that the priest may
absolve him ; let him be accursed !

'' Whoever shall say, that priests who are living
in mortal sin do not possess the power of binding
and loosing ; or that the priests are not the only

40 STNOPUS or POPfiRT,

ministers of absolution, but that it was said to all
and every one of Christ^s faithful : WhaiMoever
fou shaU hind upon earth, shall be baiind also in
heaven; and whatsoever you shall loose tqfon
earth, shall be kfosed also in heaven ; and whose
sins you shall forgive, they are forgiven^ and
whose sins you shall retain, they are retained : by
virtue of which words, any one may forgive sin ;
pubhc sins, by reproof only, if the offender shall
acquiesce ; and private sins, by voluntary confes-
sion ; let him be accursed !

^< Whoever shall say, that bishops have not the
li^ht of reserving eases to themselves, except sueh
as relate to the external polity of the church, and
therefore that the reservation of cases does not hin-
der the priest from truly absolving from reserved
cases ; let him be accursed !

^' Whoever shall say, that the vrhole penalty,
together with the guilt, is always remitted by God,
and that the sati^action of penitents is nothing
else than the faith by which they apprehend that
Christ has satisfied for them ; let him be accursed 1

'^ Whoever shall say, that satisfaction is by na
means made to God, through Christ's merits, for
sins as to their temporal penalty, by pnnishments
inflicted by him, and patiently borne, or enjoined
by the priests, though not undergone voluntarily^
as fastings, prayers, alms, or also other works of
piety, and therefore that the best penance is
nothing more than a new life ; let him be ae«
eursed 1

<' Whoever shall say, that the satisfactions by
which penitents redeem themselves from sin
thi;OUgh Jesus Christ, are no. part of the service of
God, but traditions of men, obscuring the doctrine

AS rr WAS AND At IT 18. 4t'

concerning grace, and the true worship of Qod, and
the actual benefit of Christ's death; let him be
accursed !

'* Whoever shall say, that the keys of the church
were given only for loosing, not also for binding,
and that therefore the priests, when they impose
punishments upon those who confess, act against
the design of the keys, and contrary to the insti-
tution of Christ ; and that it is a fiction, that when
by virtue of the keys the eternal penalty has been
removed, the temporal punishment may still often
remain to be suffered ; let him be accursed ! "

I must be permitted here to remind Americans,
that all Roman Catholics are taught to believe, and
distinctly to understand, that whatever they confess
to their priests, is not to be revealed ; nor is the in-
dividual, who confesses, permitted to reveal what-
ever the priest says or does to him or her, except
to another priest. For instance, should a priest in-
sult or attempt to seduce a woman, and succeed in
doing so, she dare not reveal it under pain of dam-
nation, except to another priest in confession, who
is bound also to secrecy ; and thus, priests, bishops,
popes, and sJl females of that denomination, may
be guilty of licentiousness, — the bare mention of
which would pollute the pages of this or any other
work, — with impunity. The priests can first par-
don the woman, and then themselves, according
to the doctrines of the infallible church of Rome.
This is not all. It is not enough that the sanction
of the church should be given to these enormities;
but priests also claim the right of concealing, from
the civil authorities, any knowledge which they
may have of crimes against the state as well as the
power of forgiving them. The following is the
language of the church upon that subject. Attend

•4*

4B « ■mopiis or fofert,

to it, fellow citizens, and tremble at the dangers
that threaten the destruction of your repablie,
from the introduction of Popery among yoa.

" Although the life or salvation of a man, or the
ruin of the state, should depend upon it, what ia
discovered in confession cannot be revealed. The
secret of Me^eti/— confession — is more binding
than the obligation of an oath." If a confessor
is asked, what he knows of a fact communicated
to him, be must answer that he doea not know it ;
and, if necessary, confirm it by an oath ; and '' this
is no perjury," says the Popish church, '* because
he KNOWS i^'not as man, but as GOD." There is
Popery for you, in its naked beauty 1 If a man
wishes to murder, or to rob you,* he may go to bis
priest, apprize him of his intention, confess to him
that he will assuredly murder and rob you, or that
he has done so already, and yet this priest may be
your next door neighbor, and he will not make it
known ; and why, reader ? Because he knows it as
Chdj and as Ood he tells the murderer to come to
him and he will forgive him. It is not at all im-
possible but the day may come when this country
may be at war with Europe. We can easily £Emcy
the despots of Europe forming another holt alli^
once, for the laudable, purpose of suppressing de-
mocracy. France, Austria, Spain, Italy, and a large
portion of Germany and Switzerland, together with
the HOLT SEE, would necessarily constitute that
hply junto ; and if so, and war were declared by *
them against this country, what would be the con-
sequence ? Inevitable ruin ; certain defeat ; not
caused by foes abroad, but by foes within, lei^uM
by the most solemn ties, and bound by the most
fearful oaths to sacrifice our country, and all we
value, for the advancement of the Roman church.

AS IT WAS AMD Al IT IS. 4B

That there is a foe in the midst of un, capable
of doing so, no man acquainted with the doo-
trines sud statistics of the Roman Catholic church
in this country can deny.

' It has now :*— Dioceses, 21; apostolic '^yicaratOi
1 ; number of bishops, 17 ; bishops el^t, 8 ; priests,
634 ; churches, 611 ; other stations, 461 ; ecclesiaa-
tical seminaries,. 19 ; clerical students, 261; literary
institutions for young men, 16 ; female academies,
48 ; elementary schools, passim, throughout most
of the dioceses ; periodicals, 15 ; population, 1,300,-
000. Late accounts carry tlfe population up to
2,000,000.

The increase of the Romish church, in this
country, since 1836, amounts to 12 bishops, 293
priests, 772 churches and other stations, 1,400,000
individuals, and other things in proportion.

Should the said church go on increasing for the
next thirty years as she has done for the last eight
years, the Papists would be a majority of the popi»-
iation of the United States, and the Pope our
supreme temporal ruler. * »

I have stated to you before what the doctrines
of these two millions are in relation to the power
of the Pope ; and I repeat it now, and most sol-
emnly assure you, that there is not a Reman Cath-
olic in Europe or the United States who does not
believe theU the Pope has as good a right to govern
this country as he has to govern Italy ; and that he
is, and of right ought to be, our king. Pope
Gregory YIL has declared, " that the Pope alone
ought to wear the tokens of imperial dignity, and
that all princes ought to kiss his feet." There is
not a Roman Catholic clergyman, whether bishop
or priest, who does not believe that it is the duty

44 8TiroP9is aw popert,

of our president, our governors, and magistrates, to
do the same.

Bellarmine, one of the best authorities among
Catholic writers, says, " Jfhe supremacy of the
Pope over all persons and things is the main sub-
stance of Christianity." Mark that, fellow-citi-
zens ! That is the belief of Bishop Hughes, of
New York ; that is the belief of Bishop Penwick,
of Boston, and of every other Roman Catholic
bishop in the 'United States, as I will soon show.

Pope Boniface YIII. «ays, ''It is necessary to
salvation that all Christians \>e subject to the
Pope." Bzovius, an orthodox Roman Catholic
writer, whose authority no bishop or priest will
venture to question, says of the Pope — " He is
judge in heaven, and in all earthly jurisdiction
supreme ; he is the arbiter of the world." Mosco-
vius, another eminent Popis^i writer, informs us
that '' God's tribunal and the Pope's tribunal arei
the same." Pope Paul IV., in one of his bulls,
published in the year 1557, declares, that "all
Protestants, be they kings or subjects, are cursed ; "
and this doctrine is an integral portion of the law
of the Roman Catholic church, as may be seen in
the fifth book of the decretals of the council of
Trent. THis is not all. We find in the forty-third
canon of the council of Lateran, that '' all bishops
and priests are forbidden from taking any oath of
allegiance," except to the Pope.

We find in another part of the decrees of the
council of Lateran, held under Pope Innocent III.,
the following denunciation : — " All magistrates
wlio interpose against priests in any criminal case,
whether it be for murder or high treason, let him
be excomimunicated." Bear that in mind, Ameri-

AS IT WMZ AND AS IT 18. 46

can Protestants ! If a priest murder one of you, if
he commit high treason against your government,
your magistrates dare not interfere, under pain
of being damned. So says the infallible Roman
CHURCH ; and so will shI act, should she eVer ac**
quire the power of doing so, in this country*

It is said by Lessius, an eminent Jesuit writer,
and professor of divinity in the Roman Catholic
college of Louvaine, who wrote about the year
16M, and whose authority no Roman Catholic
dare doubt, under pain of eternal damnation, that
" the Pope can annul and cancel every possible
obligation arising from an oath." This he taught
to his students in the college of Louvaine. This
same doctrine has been taught in the college of
Maynooth, Ireland, where I was educated myself.
It is taught there at the present day. See the
works of De La Hogue.

Judge you, Americans, what safety there is for
your republic, while you support and sustain
among you a sect numbering two millions, who
are sworn to uphold such doctrines as the fore-
going. The very domestics in your houses are
spies for the priests. Nothing transpires under
yomc own roofs which is not immediately known
to the bishop or priest to whom your servants
confess. But you may say, "The confessor will
not reveal it." Here you are partly right, and
partly mistaken; and it is proper to explain the
course adopted by priests in such matters as con-
fession.

If it be the interest of the church, that what is
confessed should be made public, the priest tells the
party to make it known to him, " out of the confess
sionalj^ and then he uses it to suit his own views ;
perhaps, for the destruction of the reputation, or

46 SYNOPSIS or popebt,

fortune, of the very man, or family, employing this
domestic. But it may be replied that Roman Cadio-
lies are good-uatured people ; that they are generous •
and industrious. Admitted : I will even go fur-
ther ; there is not a peopfe in the world more so.
Nature has done much for them, especially those
of them who are natives of Ireland ; but the want
of a correct^ education has corrupted their hearts,
and imbittered their feelings; they are not to be
trusted with the care or management of the afhirs
of Protestant families.

It is not generally known, nor perhaps suspected,
by Protestant parents, who employ Roman Catholic
domestics, in nursing and taking care of their chil-
dren, that these nurses are in the habit of taking
their children privately to the houses of their
priests, and bishops, and there getting them baptised^
according to the Roman Catholic ritual. I state
this as a fact, within my own knowledge. While
I officiated as a Roman Catholic priest, in Phila-
delphia, I baptized hundreds, I may say thousands,
of Protestant children, without the knowledge
or consent of their parents, brought to me secretly,
by thek Roman Catholic nurses ; and I should have
continued to do so till this day, had not the Lord,
in his mercy^ been pleased to visit me, ai^d show
me the wiles, treachery, infamy, corruption, and
intrigue of the chuik^h, of which the circumstances
of birth and education caused me to be a member.
It was usual with me in Philadelphia, in St. Mary's
church, of which I was pastor, to have service
every morning at seven o'clock ; and often ^hen I
returned home, between eight and eUven, have
I found three, four, and sometimes six and eight
children, whose parents were Protestants, waiting
for me, in the arms of their Roman Catholic nurses,

AS 1¥ WAS AMD At IT IS. 47

to be baptized. This is a common practice in
every Protestant country, where there are Roman
Catholic priests ; but as far as my experience goes,
it prevails to a greater extent in the United States
than elsewhere ; and I should not be in the least
surprised, if at this time, in the city of Boston,
nearly all the infants, nursed by Roman Catholic
wofnen, are baptized by their priests and bishops.
Roman Catholic women are unwilling to come in
contact, even with heretic infants. They believe
them damned, unless baptized by a Romish priest.
There is another fact, indirectly connected with
this subject, which is not generally known. It is
believed by Roman Catholics, that all mothers, after
their confinement, are to be churched by some
Romish priest or bishop. This churching is per-
formed by the repetition of a few prayers, in
Latin, a sprinklitig of holy water, and the woman
who does not submit to this mummery, is believed
by any Roman Catholic nurse whom she may
employ, to be eternally damned, together with her
child. They go so far as to say, that the very ground
upon which the* unchurched mother walks is ac*
cursed; that the very house in which she lives
is ctccursed ; and that all she says and does is
accursed.

So firmly have the Romish priests and bishops
fastened this belief upon the minds of their dupes,
that at this moment in Ireland, and I may venture
to say in this city of Boston, no Catholic woman
will leave her bed after confinement, without being
churched, lest the ground on which she walks may
be accursed. Until this ceremony is performed,
none of her Catholic neighbors will hold any inter-
course with* her. How then can Protestant mothers
tapect 6therwise, than that Catholic nurses will

48 ^smorsis or popbby,

have their children baptized by priests ! or what
security can they have that they will not, under
the direction of priests, try to turn the minds of
their children from the contemplation of truth, and
pure gospel light, to the foul sources of Popery and
superstition ! Look to this, American mothers.

It may not be amiss in this connection, to lay be-
fore American Protestants, the doctrine of the Rom-
ish church upon baptism ; and, lest I may be ac-
cused of setting down aught in n^alice, I shall do
so in the words of the council of Trent.

Canons of the Council of Trent concerning

Baptism, "

'' 1. Whoever shall say that the baptism of John'
had the same virtue as the baptism of Christ ; let
him be accursed !

" 2. Whoever shall say that true and natural water
is not absolutely necessary for baptism, and there-
fore wrests those words of our Lord Jesus Christ,
as though they had been a kind of metaphor : ' Ex-
cept a man be born of water, and the Holy Spirit ; '
let him be accursed !

<< 3. Whoever shall say that in the Roman
church, which is the mother and mistress of all
churches, the doctrine concerning the sacrament
of baptism is not true ; let him be accursed !

'' 4. Whoever shall say that the baptism which
is also given by heretics, in the name of the Father,
and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost, 'with the
intention p( doing what the church does, is not
true baptism ; let him be accursed !

[Here is another of those rules, by which the holy
Romish church leaves herself room to impose upon
the public. Can any man believe, can any one
even suppose a case, where a heretic acts, o^ intends

▲S IT WAS AND AS IT IS. 49

to act, according to the intention of the church
of Rome? The very act of heresy was against
that chufch atid her doctrines ; and the truth is, if
the church would speak honestly, or her priests and
bishops do ^ for her, all who are not baptized in
the Romish church, and who are baptized, are
eternally damned. So thinks, and so teaches, the
Popish church.]

'^ 5. Whoever shall say that baptism is optional,
that is, not necessary to salvation ; let him be
accursed !

"6. Whoever shall say that a baptized person
cannot, even if he would, lose grace, how much
soever he may sin, unless he is unwilling to believe ;
let him be accursed !

'' 7. Whoever shall say that baptized persons,
by baptism itself, become debtors to preserve faith
alone, and not the whole law of Christ ; let him be
accursed !

^' 8. Whoever shall say that baptized persons are
free from all precepts of holy church, which are
either written or traditional, so that they are not
bound to observe them, unless they choose to sub-
mit themselves to them of their own accord ; let
him be accursed 1

" 9. Whoever shall say that men are so to be re-
called to the memory of the baptism which they
have received, that they may regard all the vows
which are made after baptism as null and void, by
virtue of the promise already made in baptism itself,
as if by it they detract from the faith which they
have professed, and from the baptism itself; let
him be accursed !

" 10. Whoever shall say that all the sins which
^ are committed after baptism, by the mere remem-
* brance and faith of the baptism received, are

5

60 snopsii OF ropcar,

either dismissed 'or become venial ; let him be
accursed !

'^11. Whoever shall say that a baptism, truly
and with due ceremony conferred, is to be repeated
on him who has denied the faith of Christ among
infidels, when he is converted to repentance; let
him be accursed !

'' 12. Whoever shall say that no one is to be
baptized, except at that age at which Christ was
baptized, or in the article of death; let him be
accursed !

*^ 13. Whoever shall say that infants, because
they have not the act of faith, are not to be reck-
oned among believers after having received bap-
tism, and on this account are to be te-hap^ized
when they arrive at years of discretion ; or that it
is better that their baptism be omitted, than that
they should be baptized in the faith only of the
church, when they do not believe by their own
act ; let him be accursed !

'^ 14. Whoever shall say that baptized chijdreu
of this kind, when they have grown up, are to be
asked whether they wish to have that ratified
which their sponsors promised in their name when
they were baptized ; and that when they reply
that they are unwilling, they are to be left to their
own choice; and that they are not in the mean-
time to be compelled by any other punishment, to
a Christian life, except that they be prohibited the
enjoyment of the Eucharist, and the other sacra-
ments, until they repent ; let him be accursed ! "

This last canon, as the reader perceives, explahis
fully why Roman Gathglics are so anxious for the
baptism of Protestant children by their priests. It
gives them the power of compelling those children,
should they deem it q;cpedient to do so, to profess

AS IT WAS^ AKD AS IT IS. ^ 51

the Catholic faith, and thereby strengthening her
power. They try to alienate the children from the
parents ; or calculating upon that natural affection,
with which a parent clings to a child, they hope to
bring over the parent also to the Catholic faUh ; or,
failing in this, they hope to break up those alliances
of blood which nature has established, and that
community of interest and feeling, which society
has sanctioned, and religion and nature have
blessed, between parent Snd child.
. A true Papist will stop at nothing to advance the
power of the Pope, or the interest of the holy
church. Heretics, by which the reader will under-
stand all who do not belong to the Roman Catho-
lic church, are to be destroyed, cost what it will.
Deatn, and the destruction of heretics, is the watch-
word of Popery. Down with Protestant govern-
ments, kings, presidents, governors, judges, and all
other civil and religious authorities, is the war-cry
in Popish countries. They desire neither to live
nor die with us. They refuse to be laid down in
the same common earth with us. Need this be
proved to Americans ? One would suppose not.
Our intercourse with Roman Catholic countries .is
such, at present, that there can be no longer any
doubt of this fact.

Our commercial transactions with Spain, Portu-
gal, South America, Mexico, and the neighboring
Island of Cuba, enables many of our people to
judge for themselves, and say what is now the con-
dition of Protestants in those countries where
Popery predominates. Can a Protestant worship
God in those countries, according to the dictates of
his own conscience ? He cannot. They are all
told by their priests, that a Protestant is a thing too
unclean to worship God, until he is first baptized^

52 SYNOPSIS or popert,

and then shrived or confes^d by their priests. A
Protestant cannot even carry his Bible with him,
into these countries. Many of my fellow-citizens,
who may see this statement, will bear testimony to
its truth. When a Protestant arrives at any port
in a purely Catholic country, his trunks and his
person are exsgnined ; and 'if a bible is found in them,
or about him, it is taken from him. The ministers
of his religion dare not accosapany him, or if he
does, his lips are sealed, under paiA of a lingering
death. Should sickness lay its heavy hand npon
him, there is no minister to attend him, no Bible
allowed him, from which he may quench his thirst
for the waters of. life. Should death visit him,
there is no one to close the eyes of the lonely Protes-
tant stranger. A good Roman Catholic woulJ not
touch the (Accursed heretic^ and when dead he is
not allowed the rights of Christian interment;
he must be cast by the wayside, as suitable food
for the hog, the dog, and the buzzard. I{ow
many a worthy ximerican have I seen myself, in
Cuba, cast away when dead, as you would a car-
rion, not even a coffin to cover him ; and why all
this ? Because he was a heretic ; because he did not
believe in the supremacy of the Pope, and the
infallibity of the Romish church ; and yet those
inhuman wretches, those libels upon religion and
humanity, come among us, ask you for lands on
which to "build churches and pulpits, from which
they curse you and your children ; become citizens
of your republic, inmates in your families, with
smiles on their faces and curses in their hearts for
you. Let not this language be deemed exaggera-
tion. I have heard it, I have witnessed it, I have
seen it. And yet Americans, heedlessly fancying
themselves and their institutions secure, refuse

AS rr WAS AND AS IT IS.

these, thei/ sworn enemies, and foes of their religiooi
nothing they ask for. Such is the listlessness^ and
apathy of our people upon this subject, that, as far as
I am acquainted, no appeal has ever been made
to our government, to ask even for a modification
of those barbarities, with which our Protestant citi-
zens are treated, in Roman Catholic countries ; nor
has there been any effort made to alter our free
constitution, so as to enable us to retaliate upon
those Popish monsters, and obtain from the blood-
thirsty cowards, at the point of the bavonet, those
common privileges, which are almost among the
necessary appurtenances of humanity, and which
even a Pagan woufd scarcely deny to a fellow-
being.

I hold it as undeniable, that even as Protestants,
we are, at least by implication, entitled by our trea-
ties of alliance with Popish countries, to far dif-
ferent treatment from that which we receive ; and
liad the question been considered by our people,
either in their primary meetings, or through their
representatives, they would have long since, insist-
ed upon due protection and respect for the natural
rights of their citizens abroad. These natural
rights can neither be sold nor exchanged; their free
exercise is guaranteed by implication in every
treaty we make with foreign nations, and cannot
be violated by them without giving just cause of
war.

Let political casuists say what they please, there
is no principle better established in political ethics,
than that all international treaties of amity and
commerce, should be formed, and if formed, should
be kept, upon principles of justice and reciprocity.
The same national amity and courtesy, which our
Protestant country exteqds to Popish nations and
6*

54 SYNOPSIS OF POPERT, ^

their people, should be extended by them to us.
By national friendship and comity, is not, I appre-
hend, and should not, be meant or understood, the
privilege of selling a ^ale of cotton here or a bag
of coffee there. It includes the free exercise of
the rights of the parties thereto, so far, at least, as
they are not incompatible with each other, or with
the general principles of natural or national law.
The Spaniard, the Portuguese, the Italian, the
Mexicaq, or Cuban, may worship his God, the Vir-
gin Mary, or any saint he pleases, and no American
will disturb him ; no American will forbid him.
If he dies, his priests may have him buried where
he will. This is as it should be. Man has a nat-
ural right to worship God ; it is a right implanted in
his very nature. As well may we say to a man,
thou shalt not breathe the air of our country, as say,
thou shalt not worship the God that gave thee birth ;
and as well also may we say, thou shalt not
worship that God except according to the mode
which we prescribe, as forbid him doing so at all.
The natural right of worshipping God, or a first
cause, implies the right of doing so according to
the dictates of each man's conscience, provided, in
doing it, we interfere with none ot those laws,
which civilized nations should reverence. This is

^ the principle on which we act with Popish coun-
tries and people, and upon the principle of recip-
rocal justice, we ought to demand similar treatment
from them.

We have friendly treaties with these people.
Friendly, forsooth ! Can that man or that nation be
friendly, who forbids us to read our Bibles within

^heir territories, or to bury our dead among their
de€id, or to worship God according to the usages of
our forefathers, or the dictates of our own con-

AS IT WAS AVD AS IT IS.

science? Such treatien should rather be termed
treaties for the abrogation of natural rights of
Americans tpithin Popish dominions. We enjoy
no rights there ; and if we have any by imphcation,
under our treaties, they are impiously wrested from
us by a wicked rabble of priests and bishops, dis-
tinguished only for their ignorance, rapacity, and
licentiousness.

I solemnly call upon every American citizen,
vrho reveres his God, respects his fellow-citizens,
or values the happiness* of his country, to submit
no longer to Popish insolenoe abroad, and to allow
them no rights in this country, which they are not
willing to reciprocate. If our existing treaties of
amity with Popish powers are not sufficient to pro-
test us in the free exercise of our religion, when
among them, let us break them, let us tear them
asunder, and scatter them as chaff before the wind.
They were never binding upon us. They were
made in violation of natural rights, which God
alone could give, and man cannot take away. Call
upon your government to protect you ; choose no
man as your representative who will allow Popery
to flourish in this free soil, and witness the religion
of your forefathers trampled upon, with impunity,
by Papists in a neighboring country ; and if you
cannot obtain your rights by law, you will show
the world that you have, at least, moral and phys-
ical courage enough to redress your wrongs.

Let not Papists, who, at the distance of a few
days' sail from your ports, would deny your brother
the rights of Christian interment, or the consolation
of dying with his Bible in his hand, dare call up-
on your aid, to propagate a religion, which incul-
cates^ principles worse and more dangerous than
were ever practised in Pagan lands.

56 8TNOPSI8 or POP£RT,

Much sympathy is felt and expressed, particu-
larly in this state of Massachusetts, where I write,
for some of her colored population, because it is
deemed necessary, iti slave states, to prevent them
from commingling with their slaves, lest they may
excite them to dissatisfaction with their condition,
and ultimately to insurrection. It is deemed a
matter of such magtiitude that Massachusetts, in
the plenitude of its sympathy, felt herself called
upon to send an ambassador to South Carolina, to
protect her citizens, and demand redress for this
supposed outrage upon her rights. It is not my in-
tention to enter into the merits or demerits of the
question at issue between the states of Massachu-
setts and South Carolina. I will merely state, that
the former consists in this, viz : by a law of the
state of South Carolina, every free person of color,
entering that state, is liable to be imprisoned
till ho leaves the state. This is done by South
Carolina and some other slave states, as a necessary
measure of precaution ; but the prisoner is kindly
treated ; at least, we hear nothing to the contrary ;
no such complaint is made by Massachusetts. The
prisoner is allowed the free exercise of his religion ;
his friends may visit him almost at any hour ; his
spiritual instructor is never denied access- to him ;
he may have his Bible with him, or any other
books he may think proper. But this will not satisfy
the sympathizing people of Massachusetts. They
call public meetings of their citizens ; threaten to
dissolve the union ; and declare they will raise a
sufficient military force to invade South Carolina,
and redress this outrage upon a citizen's rights, at
the point of the bayonet.

Man is tnily a strange being, and various indeed
are the currents of his sympathies, but still more va-

, AS IT- WAS AND AS IT IS. SJ

rious aiid unaccountable are the causes which often
set them in motion. It isconiparatively but seldom,
that a colored citizen of the North goes to sla\re
states ; but if there should be the least infraction of
his civil rights, the whole North flies into a pas-
sion ; and yet this very people of the North can see
the citizens of their own country, kindred, and
blood, in a neighboring Popish port of Havana, for
instance, deprived of all their rights, both conven-
tional and natural, without a murmur. Not a com-
plaint is heard in New England, from the son,
whose &ther is confined in the dungeons of Cuba,
not because he is suspected of any intention to cre-
ate, insurrection, but simply because he refused to
kneel to some wooden image, which a parcel of
debauched priests are lugging about the streets ; or
because he expresses his belief that such pro-
cessions and mummeries are worse than Pagan
idolatry.

The American Protestant, who will dare worship
his God publicly, or even in private, within the
walls of his own house, unless with closed doors,
and without the knowledge of the Popish spies
of the Inquisition, is liable to imprisonment,
from which, in all probability, he is never to be
released. If a Bible be found in his house, it is
^burned, and he and his family are cast into jail.
This is^the case in every country where the Popish
church has power enough to make its religion that
of the state ; and yet we have treaties of amity
with those countries. What a burlesque upon
amity/ what a mockery of friendly relations, with
a people who deny us the exercise of the natural
right which every man has, to worship God as he
pleases ! who compel our fathers, brothers, and our
•onS| to bow the knee, in idolatrous worship, to

88 STMOPBIS or POPEBY, ' ^

wooden images, and particles of bread, which are
paraded as Gods^ through the streets, in Roman
Catholic countries. Friendly relatiotis, forsooth,
with a people who consider us damned, and already
consigned to |)erdition ! And yef we hear no com-
plaint in Massachusetts, of cruelties to our citizens;
nothing is said of the violation of those friendly re-
lations, secured to us by treaty, and annually de-
clared by our presidents, hi their messages, to exist
and to be maintained between our people and those
Popish countries. When we hear of an American
citizen in Cuba, when we hear of his natural rights
being tran^fed under foot, by Catholic governors,
bishops, and priests, no complaint is made of a vio-
lation of friendly alliance ; no meeting is called to
express sympathy for the individual sufferer, or
indignation against the treacherous governoient of
Popery ; no act of our legislature has been passed,
making appropriations to send ambassadors to these
neighboring nations, for injuries done to our citi-
zens ; and yet it is a well-known fact, that where
one colored citizen of New England is imprisoned,
for a few days, in South Carolina, there are a thou-
sand of our enterprising seamen and merchants, con-
fined in the dungeons of Spain, Italy, Portugal,
Mexico, and Cuba, at our very door. How long
will these outrages he tolerated ? A Popish captain
comes here; the hands before the mast are Papists;
the ship may have her chaplain, or may have as many
little gods, and saints, indulgences, scapulas, beads,
and rosaries, as they please ; they may land, captain,
crew, saints, and all, and no one molests them ; but if
an American ship arrives at the very port from Which
the other sailed, heroaptain and crew are forbidden
even to carry their Bible on shore ; but should the
ship have a Protestant chaplain, and that chaplaia

A8 IT WAS AND AS IT IS. 59

▼entnre on shore, with his congregation of sailors — -
all American freemen — he dare not take his Bible
with him, or hold religious worship on this Popish
soil ; and should this captain, chaplain, or any of
the crew die, he is not allowed Christian burial,
unless he can buy the privilege from profligate
priests, at an enormous sacrifice of money, and
after certain furifications efiiected by holy water,
and smoking, which they call incense. This is
what our government calls friendly relations.

How long shall we be amused by the executive
messages, annually informing us of receiving "as-
surances of friendship from Popish countries ? "
Let the people take this subject into their own
hands ; let them have no alliance, no treaty, no
commerce with a people, who will deny them the
right of worshipping God peaceably and respect-
fully, or who will refuse them the right of burying
their dead decently and with due solemnity. The
treaties which are made with Papists begin, on their
part, with the most solemn avowal of good faith,
in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.
They assure us of their friendly sentiments towards
us under this solemn and awful sanction ; but no
sooner is this promise made — no sooner have they
pledged their honor, their faith, and all that is holy,
to support it •^— than they disregard all those obliga-
tions, feeling and believing that they are already
dispensed with by their church, which teaches
them to hold no faith with heretics. The priests,
however, and bishops, more crafty than the mass
of their people, plead state necessity for withhold-
ing from us privileges which we give them. This
is a shallow pretext, and worthy only of the source
from which it comes. Can* any case bfe supposed,
or any necessity arise, to violate the eternal princi-

60 SYMOPttltt or POFCftV,

pies of right and wrong, of justice and truth?
Are moral and national obligations anything more
than mere dead letters and leaden rules, which can
be bent by hands strong enough to do so, and to
suit their own purposes and designs?

Suppose a man in private life — suppose further,
that man to be a Papist — he enters into a treaty of
alliance and friendship with a Protestant ; he calls
God the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost to witness
that he will fulfil his engagement ; we can easily
fancy the Protestant, within the jurisdiction of that
Papist, reading his Bible, without interfering or
any way noolesting the individual within whose
jurisdiction he is. Let us imagine this Protestant
seized by the Papist, thrown into prison by him,
while alive, and if dead, thrown away as food for
the birds of prey. Would you call this fulfilling
the obligations of friendship or friendly alliance?
Would the Protestant ever enter into such a treaty
of alliance again ? Would not every Protestant
who witnessed this transaction look upon the Pa*
pist who committed it, even though he be but a
private individual, as a bad man, with whom no
further intercourse ougfit to be had? Assuredly,
he would. But let it be borne in mind, that ac-
tions do not change their nature ; immutable prin-
ciples are always the same ; they do not change with
the paucity or number of actors ; what is bad in
an individual will be wrong in a nation, and in
every individual of that nation. The only differ-
ence is, that an act of perfidy and bad faith in a
nation is, if possible, worse in itself, and infinitely
more mischievous, than if committed by an in-
dividual.

Our political sophists may deny this, and gloss
over the conduct of Popish governments towards

▲8 It WAS IHD AS IT IS. 61

our citizens while among them ; but they cannot
long hide from our people that the eternal laws of
tnith cannot be violated ; nor can their meaning be
frittered away by the technicalities of treaties.
Truth, whether moral or political, is like the sun
of heaven ; it is but one — it is the same every
where. It is sometimes clouded, it is true, but
these clouds are momentary ; they pass away, and
it shines again in its native brilliancy. The day
is fast coming, and I trust it has even arrived, when
Americans will see, that by a treaty of amity is not
naeant the right of shipping our commodities to
Popish countries, and receiving theirs in exchange ;
reserving to one party the privilege of denying to
the other a right dearer to him than ^1 earthly
considerations ; and which is guarantied to him by
the eternal laws of God, while the other party is
under no restraint as to the full and free enjoyment
of those natural rights. And here, I beg leave to
say to our legislators, that Protestant Americans,
upon due reflection, will not long give their assent
to any treaty, nor form an alliance with any coun-
try, which shall deny them the free exercise of
their religion.

The American, who will enter into an alliance
with the Pope, or a Popish comitry, explicitly
screes to deny his God, and forswear the religion
of his forefathers. He virtually consents that the
party with which be makes the agreement shall be
privileged to curse and damn him, his country, his
religion, and his rights. This needs no proof.
Look around you, and see your citizens in Mexico
denying their God by submitting to Popish laws,
which forbid their worship according to the dic-
tates of their conscience. Were your puritan fore-
fathers to witness this, would they not exclaim^

6

02 ITKOPBIB or POPERT,

'^ Shame upon our degenerate sons, who will barter
their religion and their birthright for the petty
advantages of commerce ! " No wonder that Popish
priests and Popish presses should call Americans
cfnpard» and the sons of cowards. Who but a
coward, and what but a nation of cowards, would
surrender that liberty of conscience which their
forefathers purchased at the price of blood? This
Americans do by assenting to a treaty with any
country which does not guarantee to them the
right of worshipping God without hindrance.
Americans will not forget, though they cannot
too often be reminded of the fact, that those coun-
tries where their feelings are thus outraged* are, de
facto, go^med by the Pope and his vicegerents,
whose actions for centuries back have proved them
to have been no other than conspirators against the
improvement and happiness of the human race.
• What were the means by which they conducted
their governments ? The very same that they are
now in every Roman Catholic country, all over
the globe ; craft, dissimulation, oppression, extortion,
and abo^e all, fire, faggot, and the sword. There
is not an article of their faith, nor a sacrament of
their church, which is not enforced by curses, as I
shall show in the sequel. These vicegerents of
the humble Redeemer have the insolence to ape
the very thunders of heaven. History informs us,
that their robes have been crimsoned in blood.
Their images of saints, some of which I have seen
in Mexico, made of solid gold, and many of them
six feet high and well-proportioned, were wrung
from the poor.

Many of those countries, which they now pos-
sess, and where God and nature have scattered
plenty, have been made barren by Popish avaricei

AS IT WA9 AND Att IT IS. 63

and the licentiousaess of its priests. The fields,
which laughed with plenty, they have watered with
hunger and distress. They found the world gay
with flowers, and with roses: they dyed it with
blood. They and their doctrines acted upon it
like the blast of an east wind. Popery, since the
eighth century in particular, has been what a pes-
tilence or conflagration is to a city.

Come with me, in imagination, to Italy, and
judge for yourselves. Pass on with me, to Spain,
Portugal, South America, and you will see that I am
not exaggerating. You will find that I have only
told truth, but not the whole truth. No tongue can
tell it. We have no language to express it. I will
give you a few instances of the fruits of Popery in
the neighboring island of Cuba. What I am about
stating has come under my own observation ; and
is, besides, a matter of record, and accessible to
many. The natives of Cuba pay fifteen millions
per annum to her most Christian Majesty, the
queen of Spain. They support an army of sixteen
thousand men, every one of whoin is a native of
old Spain, kept there for the sole purpose of ex-
'torting this enormous annual tribute. The number
of priests there is immense. They, too, must be
supported at the point of the bayonet. These
priests are known to be the most profligate vaga-
bonds in creation. And why, it will naturally be
asked, should such men be tolerated ? Why supply
them with money to gamble at the faro table, at
cock-fights and bull-fights ? The reason is plain ;
they act as spies for the Pope, who, in reality,
manages the government of old Spain, and con*
trives to draw, from that already impoverished and
distracted country, the last dollar of a people whom
God has endowed with every virtue, and a capacity

64 SYNOPSIS or popkrt,

of cultivratiug them, had not the curse of Popery
fallen upon them.

Such is the avarice of the Popish church and
Popish tyrants, that, if a farmer in Cuba kills even
a beef for his own use, he must pay the govern-
ment ten per cent, upon its value. When I was in
Cuba-, the farmer must pay ten and a half dollars
duty upon every barrel of flour imported into the
island ; when he might raise, in the field, before his
own door, the finest wheat in the world, if the gov-
ernment would let him. Such are but a few of the
blessings of Popish goverments. Do Americans
desire this republic reduced to such a state of vas-
salage as this ? or will you profit by these lessons,
which experience is daily teaching you ? Wherever
you turn your eyes, and see Popery in the ascendaj;Kt,
you will find it the Pandora's box, out of which
every curse has issued, without even leaving hope
behind. It should, therefore, be suppressed on its
appearance in any country. It should be, the duty
of every good man to extirpate it, and sweep it, if
possible, from the face of the globe. It is nothing
better than a political machine, cunningly devised,,
for the propagation of despotism. It is the* mas-
terpiece of Satanic wickedness. Execrated and
exploded be this infernal machine ! and thanks
forever be to that God, who has shown me its in-
tricacies, in time to save me from becoming what,
I know of my own knowledge*, Roman Catholic
priests are — hypocrites, infidels, and licentious
debauchees, under the mask of sanctity and. holi-
ness. Their religion is supported by curses, as I
have before stated, and will now prove from the
doctrines of their own church. The reader has al-
ready been told, that the Popish church maintains
the doctrines that a belief in seven sacraments is

AS It WAl AMD AS IT 18. 64

necesftary to salvation. These sacraments are desig-
nated as follows : Baptism, Confirmaiion^ Eucha*
risty Penance, Extreme Unction, Holy Order$, and
Matrimony. And she enforces this by curves. I have
already enumerated the curses with which she en-
forces her belief in baptism. The next sacrament
is Confirmation, enforced by the following eloquent
curses, pronounced by the infallible council of
Trent : —

" 1. Whoever shall say that the confirmation
of baptized persons is a needless ceremony, and not
rather a true and proper sacrament : or that ancient-
ly it was nothing else than a kind of catechizing,
by which the youth expressed the reason of their
faith before the church ; let him be accursed !

" 2. Whoever shall say that they do despite to
the Holy Spirit who attributes any virtue to the
holy chrism of confirmation ; let him be accursed !

" 3. Whoever shall say, the . ordinary minister
of holy confirmation is not the bishop alone, but
any mere priest whatsoever ; let him be accursed ! "

The next sacrament is the Eucharist. The fol-
lowing is the doctrine of the Romish church in re-
lation to this : —

Decree of the Council of Florence for (he Instruc-

Hon of the Armenians.

" The third is the sacrament of the Eucharist, the
matter of whiqh is wheaten bread, and wine from
the vine ; with which, before the consecration, a
very small quantity of water should be mixed. But
water is thus mixed, since it is believed that the
Lord himself instituted this sacrament in wine,
mixed with water: besides, because this agrees
with the representation of our Lord's jpassion : be-
cause it is recorded that blood and water flowed

6*

66 SYNOPSIS or popckt,

forth from the side of Christ : and also because this
is proper lo signify the effect of this sacramenti
which is the union of Christian people with Christ:
for water signifies the people, according to Rev.
xvii. 15. And he said to me, the waters^ which
thou sawesty where the harlot sittethj are peoples,
and nationSy and tongues,

" The form of this sacrament are the words of
the Saviour, by which this sacrament is performed :
for the priest, speaking in the person of Christ, per-
forms this sacrament : for, by virtue of the words
themselves, the substance^ of the bread is convertral
into the body, and the substance of the wine into
the blood, of Christ ; yet so that Christ is con-
tained entire under the form oft bread, and entire
under the form of wine : Christ is entire also under
every part of the consecrated host, and of the con-
secrated wine, after a separation has been made.
The effect of this sacrament, which it produces
in the soul of a worthy partaker, is the union of the
person to Christ," &c.

Canons of the Council of Trent, concerning the
Most Holy Sacrament of the Eucharist.

" 1. Whoever shall depy that, in the sacrament
of the most holy Eucharist are contained truly, re-
ally, and substantially, the body and blood, togeth-
er with the soul and divinity, of our Lord Jesus
Christ, and therefore the entire Christ, but shall say
that he is iry t only as in a sign, or figure, or virtue ;
let him be accursed !

''2 Whoever shall say that in the most holy
sacrament of the Eucharist, the substance of bread
and wine remains together with the body and blood
of our Lord Jesus Chiist,and shall deny that wonder-
ful and singular conversion of the whole substance

AS IT WAS AND At IT IS. 67

of the bread into the bodjr, and of the whole sub*
stance of *thQ wine into the blood, only the fonna^
of bread and wine remaining, which conversion
indeed the Catholic church most aptly calls tran-
substantiation ; le% him be accursed !

^^3 Whoever shall deny that in the adorable
sacrament of the Eucharist, the entire Christ is
contained under each kind, and under the single
parts of each kind, when a separation is made ; let
him be accursed !

• " 4. Whoever shall say that the body and blood
of our Lord Jesus Christ are not 'present in the ad-
mirable Eucharist so soon as the consecration is
performed, but only in the use when it is received,
and neither before nor after, and that the true body
of our Lord docs not remain in the hosts, or con-
secrated morsels, which are reserved or left after the
communion ; let him be accursed !

"6. Whoever shall say either that remission of
sins is the principal fruit of the most holy Eucha*
rist, or that no other effects proceed from it ; let
faim be accursed !

^' 6. Whoever shall affirm that in the holy sacra-
ment of the Eucharist, Christ, the only-begotten
Son of God, is not to be adored, even with the ex-
ternal worship of latria, and therefore that the
Eucharist is to be honored neither with peculiar
festive celebration, nor to be solemnly carried about
in processions according to the laudable and uni-
versal rite and custom of the church, or that it is not
to be held up publicly before the people that it may
be adored, and that its worshippers are idolaters ; let
him be accursed !

" 7. -Whoever shall say that it is not lawful that
the holy Eucharist be reserved in the sacristy, but
that it miist necessarily be distributed to those who

68 sTsroFsis of fofcrt,

are present immediately afker the consecration ; of
^hat it is not proper that it be carried ia procession
to the sick ; let him be accursed !

*' 8. Whoever shall say that Christ, as exhibited
in the Eucharist, is eaten only spiritually, aud not
also sacramentally and really ; let him be accursed!

'* 9. Whoever shall deny that each and every
one of Christ's faithful, of both sexes, when they
have attained to years of discretion, are obliged, at
least once every year, at Easter, to commune ac-
cording to the precept of holy mother church ,* let
him be accursed !

'' 10. Whoever shall say that it is not lawful for
the officiating priest to administer the communion
to himself; let him be accursed !

" 11. Whoever shall affirm that faitti alone is a
sufficient preparation for taking the sacrament of
the most holy Eucharist; let him be accursed!
And lest so great a sacrament be taken unworthily,
and therefore to death and condemnation, the said
holy synod doth decree and declare, that sacra-
mental confession must necessarily precede in the
case of those whom conscience accuses of mortal
sin, if a confessor is at hand, however contrite they
may suppose themselves to be. But if any one
shall presume to teach, preach, or pertinaciously
assert, or in publicly disputing, to defend the con-
trary, let him by this very act be excommunicated."

Canons of the same Council concerning the Comr
munion of Children, and in both Kinds.

'< 1. Whoever shall say that each and every one
of Christ's faithful ought to take both kinds of tlie
most holy sacrament of the Eucharist, by the com*
mand of God, or because necessary to aalYation ;
let him h% accursed !

AS IT WAS AND AS IT IS. 69

'< 2. Whoever shall say that the holy Catholic
church has not been induced, by just causes and
reasons, to administer the communion to' the laity,
and also to the clergy not officiating, only under
Che form of bread ; or that she has erred in this ;
let him be accursed !

*'3. Whoever shall deny that the whole and
entire Christ, the fountain and author of all graces,
is received under the one form of bread, because,
as sonie falsely assert, he is not received under both
kinds, according to the institution of Christ; let
him be accursed !

" 4 Whoever shall say that the communion of
the Eucharist is necessary for little children be-
fore they have attained to years of discretion;
let him be accursed ! " &rC.

The next in order is Extreme Unction.

Canofis of the Cmmdl of Trent concerning

Extreme Unction.,

*^ I. Whoever shall say that extreme unction is
not truly and properly a sacrament instituted by
Christ our Lord, and promulgated by the blessed
apostle James, but only a rite received from the
fathers, or a human invention ; let him be accursed !

"2. Whoever shall say that the sacred anointing
of the sick does not confer grace, nor remit sins,
nor raise up the sick, but that it has now ceased,
as if the gift of healing existed only in past ages ;
let him be accursed ! %

^'3. Whoever shall say that the ceremony of
extreme unction in the practice which the holy
Roman church observes, are repugnant to the
meaning of the blessed apostle James, and that,
therefore, they are to be changed ; let Kim be
accursed ! "

The sixth sacrament is that of Orders. "*

70 8TNOF8I8 OF POFEBY,

Cantms of the Council of Trent concerning Orden.

'' 1. Whoever shall say that in the New Testft-
ment, there is not a visible and external priesthood:
or that there is not any power of consecrating and
offering the true body and blood of the Lord, and
of remitting and retaining sins : but only the office
and naked ministry of preaching the gospel; or
that they who do not preach are surely not priests;
let him be accursed !

'^ 2. Whoever shall say that besides the priest-
hood there are not other orders in the Catholic
church, both greater and inferior, by which as by
certain steps, the priesthood may be attained; let
him be accursed !

'<3. Whoever shall say that orders, pr ^^red or-
dination, is not truly and properly a sacrament
instituted by Christ the Lord ; or that it is a cer-
tain human invention, devised by men ignorant of
ecclesiastical things, or that it is only a certain
ceremony of choosing the ministers of the word
of God and of the sacraments ; let him be ac-
cursed !

<^ 4. Whoever shall say that by sacred ordination
the Holy Spirit is not given, and that therefore the
bishops say in vain. Receive the Holy Ghost : or
that by it character is not impressed : or that he
who has once been a priest may again become a
layman ; let him be accursed !

"5.. Whoever shall say that the sacred unction
which the church uses in holy ordination is not
only not required, but is contemptible and perni-
cious ; likewise also the other ceremonies of orders;
let him be accursejd !

" 6. Whoever shall say that in the Catholic
church there is not a hierarchy instituted by divine

48 tr WIS A9D AS IT 18. 71

appointment, which consists of bishops, priests,
and ministers ; let him be accursed (

" 7. JWhoever shall say that bishops are not su-
perior to priests, or that they have not the power
of confirming and ordaining ; or that which they
have is 'common to them with the priests; or
that orders conferred by them without the consent
or call of the people or the secular power, are null
and void ; or that they who have been neither
duly ordained nor sent by ecclesiastical and canon-
ical power, but come from some other source, are
lawful ministers of the word and sacraments,* let
him be accursed !

"8. Whoever shall say that the bishops, who
are appointed by the authority of the Roman pon-
tiff, are not lawful and true bishops, but a human
invention ; let him be accursed ! "

Canons of the Council of Trent concerning

Marriage.

"1. Whoever shall say that marriage is not truly
and properly one of the seven sacraments of the
evangelical laws instituted by Christ the Lord, but
that it is invented by men in the church and does
liot confer grace ; let him be accursed !

"2. Whoever shall say that it is lawful for
Christians to have several wives at once, and that
this is forbidden by no divine law ; let him be
accursed !

"3. Whoever shall say that only those degrees
of' relationship and affinity, which are expressed
in Leviticus, can hinder marriage from being con-
tracted, and .annul the contract; and that the
church cannot dispense in any of them, or appoint
that more may hinder and annul ; let him be
accursed!

<<4. Whoever shall say that the Chui% could

Ti sTMOPsis or rorERY,

not constitute impediments annuUing marriage, or
that in constituting them, she has erred ; let him
be accursed !

"5. Whoever shall say that the bond of mar*
riage may be dissolved on account of heresy, or
mutual dislike, or voluntary absence from the bus*
band or wife ; let him be accursed !

*'6. Whoever shall say that a marriage solem-'
nized, but not conmimmated, is not annulled by the
solemn profession of a religious order by one of the
parties ; let him be accursed !

" 7. Whoever shall say that the church errs,
when she has taught and teaches that according to
the evangelical and apostolical doctrine, the bond
of marriage cannot be dissolved on account of the
adultery of one or the other of the parlies^ and
that neither of them, not even the innocent party
who has given no cause for the adultery, may con-
tract another marriage, whilst the party is living,
and that he comrnits adu)tery, who marries another
after putting away his adulterous wife, or she, who
marries another, after putting away her adulterous
husband ; let him be accursed !

"8. Whoever shall say that the church is in
error when, for many reasons, she decrees that a
separation may be made between married persons,
as to the bed, or as to intercourse, either for a cer-
tain, or an uncertain time; let him be accursed.

" 9. Whoever shall say that the clergy, consti*
tuted in sacred order, or regulars, who have solemn-
ly professed chastity, may contract marriage, and
that the contract is valid, notwithstanding* ecclesi-
astical law, or vow, and that to maintain the oppo-
site, is nothing else than to condemn marriage ; and
that ail may contract marriage, who do not think
that they have the gift of chastity, even though
ihejr hsure vowed it ; let him be accursed : as God

AS IT WAS AMD AS IT 18. 73

does not deny this to those who seek it aright, nor
does he suffer us^to be tempted /tbove wKat we are
able to bear.

" 10. Whoever shall say that the married state
is to be preferred to a state of virginity, or celibacy,
and that it is not better and more blessed to remain
in virginity, or celibacy, than to be joined in mar-
riage ; let him be accursed !

>* 11. Whoever shall affirm that the prohibition
of the solemuization of marriage, at certain ^ times
of tha year, is a tyrannical superstition, borrowed
from the superstitions of the Pagans, or shall con-
demn the benedictions, and other ceremonies, which
the church uses at those times; let him be ac-
cursed ! ' .

" 12. Whoever shall affirm that matrimonial
causes do not belong to the ecclesiastical judges ;
let him be accursed ! '*

The atrocity of the above doctrines, is evident
to every reflecting mind. Protestants can now see
for themselves, whether they can safely hold any
communion with them, or have any confidence
in Roman Catholics. There is not a Protestant
Christian in the United States, nor in the world,
who js not publicly and solemnly denounced, as an
accursed being, by the Roman Catholic church,
and by each and ev^y one of its members ; but in
addition to those curses, which I have enumerated,
there is another more solemn ; one which is annu-
ally pronounced against them, by the Pope of Rome,
and by every bishop and priest in this country. It
is known by the title of Bulla in cend Domini,
The curse contained in this bull, is pronounced
annually at Rome, by the Pope, on Thursday
before Good Friday. It includes every living
being who is not a Roman Catholic. All our pres-

7

74. SYNOPSIS. OFrf POPE AY,

idents, vice-presideats, members of congress, gov^
ernorSy magistrates, municipal authorities, officers
of .our navy and army, all our Protestant clergy-
men, whether Unitarians, Presbyterians, Episcopa-
lians, Baptists, or Methodists : and upon all these,
without distinction, the Pope of Rome, dressed iu
his royal robes, invokes the curse of Heaven, once
at least every year. Every priest in the Roman
church is bound to do the same. It was a part of
my own duty, and one which I never failed to dis-
charge, until I protested against the doctrines of
the Romish church. The Popish priests never
deemed it prudent to pronounce this curse publicly,
in the United States, but while I was anK)ng them,
we never omitted to do so privately, on the morn-
ing of Thursday before Good Friday. It com-
mences with the following words on the part s>£
the Pope : —

" We, therefore, following the ancient custom of
our predecessors, of holy memory, do firstly — ex-
communicate and curse, in the neune of Almighty
God, Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, and by the au-
thority of St. Peter and St. Paul, and by our own
authority, all Heretics, Hussites, Wickliffites, "Lu-
therans, Calvinists, Huguenots, Anabaptists, Trinita-
rians, and all apostates from the faith, and all who
read their books," <kc., &c. This curse includes
every soul in the United States, who is not a, Roman
-Catholic. Will you, Americans give these men
and their doctrines footing among you ? Will they
longer dare to curse you and your children with
impunity?

In the 6th section of the above bull, the Pope
and his priests curse all civil- powers, who impose
taxes without the consent of the Roman court.

In the 12th section, they curse all, who maltreat

r

kS IT WAS AMD AS IT IS. 75

cardinals, bishops, ^ priests. You are, therefore, to
take heed and not quarrol^with priests, though they
insult your wives, or debauch your famihes. In
the 15th section, ail are cursed, who take away
jurisdiction from the court of Rome, dnd grefer
leaving causes of difference between* them and
priests, to our civil tribunals.

Invthe 17th section, all are cursed, who in ajiy
case appeal to civil tribunals, when the difficulty
is between Romish priests and citizens.

In the 18th section, the Pope curses all who take
away church property.

In the 19th section, the Pope curses all who,
without express license from him, impose, taxes on
priests, nionasteries, nunneries, or churches. Our
legislature is sitting whil^ I write. Take heed,
gentlemen, lest you tax the Roman Catholic bishop-
Fenwick, or any of his priests. Be sure you do not
tax his real estate, his nunneries, or other property.
If you do, you are doubly damned.

In the 20th section, the church curses all judges,
and magistrates, who shall sit in judgment on
a bishop or priest, without license from the holy
sec

In^he 22d section, this bull is declared to be bind-
ing forever, and it is brought to a conclusion by a
solemn assurance that if any priest shall violate it,
he shall incur the wrath of Almighty God, and of
St. Peter and Paul.

I would again ask Americans whether Roman
Catholic priests, or bishop, or the two millions of
£olloweijf which they have in this country, are any
longer to be trusted. I tell Americans, and I pro-
claim it to the world, that they are spies upon our re-
public ; they are the sworn foes of our laws, of our
principles, and of our government; and they are
united by the most fearful oath never to rest while

76 StNOFSlS OF POPERy,

our religious liberty lasts, and to use every means
which ingenuity can devise, ana treachery and per-
jivy accomplish, to etfect its overthrow, aad substi-
tute in its place, the religion of the Pope ; a religion,
if sucli a name can be given to a most infamous
system of (Hilicy, which for sixteen hundred years
has deluged Europe in blood.

I make these assertions, not at random, not upon
hearsay, not upon the authority of Protestant wri-
ters, but upon that of Roman Catholic theologians,
and upon my own personal knowledge. I solemnly
declare it to be my deliberate opinion, that it is the
duty of all civil governments on the face of the
earth, to unite in excluding, from their territories,
all Roman Catholic priests and bishops, as their
deadly enemies, and the sworn transgressors of all
national law ; and for us in this country to counte-
nance them, while they have any connection with
the Pope of Rome, or profess to owe him any alle-
giance, is nothing short of a species of insanity.
The bull of which I hdve spoken, is taught in
every Roman Catholic college in the United States.
The students in those institutions are educated in
the belief th&t their church, which is infallible, re-
quires of them to be unfaithful to this heretical
government, and not only that, but to betray it,
whenever the interest of the church demands it.

Every Irish Roman Catholic priest, who comes
to this country, is instructed by his bishop,, to pull
down, if possible, the standard of heresy, which he
is told he will find waving over the United States,
and erect in its place that of the Pope, v^hich }^e
swears to defend.

These are the principles of priests and their fol-
lowers, who are coming amongst you in thousands ;
whom you have encouraged for the last fifty years,
until at last, you have emboldened them, by your

AS IT WAS AND AS IT IS. it

mistaken sensibility and mock philanthropy, to say
and proclaim to the universe, Americans shan't
rule ttsw This was th^ir motto, during: the last
presidential election ; a motto devised and blessed
by those turbulent demagogues and pensioned
agents of the Pope, in New York. But they
are not the only Papists who have proclaimed
that Americans shall not rule. them. The same
has been done in Philadelphia and Boston.
These men are at the bottom of all the riots,
tumults, and popular commotions, which have
occurred in this country for several years back.
Witness the disturbances in Philadelphia, in 1821
and 1822, by - an Irish bishop, in trying to get
possession, in the name of the Pope, of church
property, estimated to be worth over a mil-
lion of dollars. (I shall refer to this hereafter.)
Witness the riots in the same city last May, where
several Americans have been sacrificed to the fury of
a Popish mob. Witness the proceeding in this city
of Boston, on the occasion of a nun having made
her escape from the convent in Charlestown,lo avoid,
I have no doubt, what delicacy forbade her to men-
tion. Other causes were assigned for her escape, and
some were weak enough to deem them sufficient Y
but from my oyn knowledge of convents, there can
be no doubt of the real cause of the escape of the
virtuous young lady, of whom mention is made.

Here is another instance of the morbid and mis-
taken sensibility of many of our people. A certain
number of Popish agents have applied to our legis-
lature to build a jail^ which they call a convent,
in our very midst. To this jail, they attach a
school, for the education of young l|idies, and for
this ostensible purpose, numbers of older ones are

kept in the jail or convent, by the Pope's agents.

•"•

78 STNOPSIS OF FOFEiiY,

The young ladies, who are sent to this -school, ate
treated with kiudness and atteiitiou ; every thing ia
done to please, to flatter them, and even to cultivate
their minds. The interior of the jail or nunnery is
depicted in the most delightful colors. The hap-
piness of the inmates is said to be equal to the
saints in paradise. No opportunity is lost to impress
on the minds of their pupils, the temporal as
well as eternal beatitudes of this convent, until,
finally, the young minds of the scholars become
perfectly enchanted, and, in the full glow of their
youthful imagination, they determiue to *becomei
NUNS. This step, too, they are taught to take with
apparent caution ; they must serve a noviciate, go
through all the ceremony of wearing a white veil ;
the old nuns representing to them the happiness
they are about to enjoy, when they are about to
assume the black veil. But when this is. done, the
poor innocent victims soon feel the horrors of their
condition. They are confined to solitary cells, to
which no one has access but the priests^ and thus,
in our very midst, a free born American citizen is
seduced from her parents, from her guardians, and
fellow-citizens, and no one is permitted to go and
ask her freely how she likes her condition. She is
confined there with more severity^, and watched
more closely, than any female in a Turkish Seragl-
io ; and as we all recollect, a few years ago, a Popish
bishop, with his priests, and some thousands of
their subjects^ viz., Irish Papists, threatened to sack
the city of Boston, because the people deemed it
necessary to pull down that synagogue of satan,
the Charlestown nunnery. I am not an advocate of
mobs or riots : I would observe the law of the land,
and see it enforced at every risk ; but there is a point
at which no man would support even the civil law.

AS IT Was and as it is. 79

There are laws fouuded upon necessity^ and the eter-
« sal laws of morality, which hare a paramount claim
upon our allegiance. Suppose some hoary-headed
profligate should obtain a charter to build a house
on Mount Benedict ; suppose further, he attaches a
school to it, to be governed by the faded victims of
his former dissipation, with a view of making
money for himself ; suppose he and they bad the
address to gather around them some of the most
innocent, lovely, and respeetable females in the
couatryj let us even suppo.se that ninety-nine in a
, hundred of those young ladies left that school with
unblemished reputation and high accomplishments ;
and we had that evidence that only one in a hundred
fell victims to the designs of the founders of this
corrupt institution ; who would hesitate to determine
what should be done with this institution, or this
nunnery, as Roman Catholic priests would call it?
An answer is not necessary. &ut suppose the
hoary-headed gentleman should apply to the , le-
gislature to rebuild it, would they do so ? There
was a time when their acquaintance with Popery
might have induced them to say aye, if such a reso-
lution were introduced; but now that they have
seen Popery in its native colors, withered should be
the tongue of him who would advance such a
proposition ; and paralyzed should be the arm of the
American who would support it. But it may 'be
replied, that the Roman Catholic church is differ-
ent now from what it was in ancient times ; that
it has essentially changed in its doctrine and in its
discipline. y .,

Others may say that Protestants, too, have been in-
tolerant, and guilty of many cruelties, in the propa-
gation of their religion. This is freely admitted :
but there is this wide difference between the two
religions. The Popish creed inculcates persecution

80 SYNOPSIS or POPERT,

and ntter extermination of all who do not believe
in its doctrines ; while on the contrary, the' creed •
of the latter has never, and does not now, inculcate
any other doctrine, than Jesus Christ, and him cru-
cified. In plain English, the Romish church curses
all who differ from her ; while the Protestant
6hurch blesses all, though they may be in error,
and sincerely prays for their conversion. The spirit
of the latter breathes nothing but love, joy, peace,
and good will to mankind ; that of the former, mal-
ice, hatred, ill will, and persecution. Tjiis .has
been her uniform theory from the middle of the
third century, and as I will now show you, from
the lips of her own divines, and canonized saints,
her members have never ceased to reduce it to
practice. Cyril, who is to this day invoked, and
prayed to as a saint, taught and practised the above
Romish doctrine. He was bishop of Alexandria,
in the year four hundred and twelve. There is
not a Roman Catholic, who is not taught to pray
to him ; and, of course, they can have no objection
to my giving him as authority. Whatever St. Cyril
believed, is believed by Papists now. Whatever
he did was- right, and according to sound doctrine ;
consequently as Holy Mother, the church, never
errs, and never can err, it must be right now. Let
us see what this saint has done' and believed, in
hi^ time. Socrates, a native of Constantinople,
gives the following account of a portion of the life
of St. Cyril, and other bishops of Alexandria. I
take it from his ecclesiastical history.

The bishops of Alexandria had begun, says Soc-
rates, to exceed the limits of ecclesiastical power,
alld to intermeddle with civil affairs, imitating,
(MMneby, the bishop of Romcf whose sacred author-
ity had, long since, b^n changed into dofininion
aid empire.

AS IT WAS AND A8 IT IS. 81

The governors of Alexandria, looking upon the
, increase of the Roniish episcopal power as a dim-
inution of the civil, watched the bishops, in oi:der
to restrain them within the limits of the spiritual,
and prevent their encroaching on the temporal
jurisdiction. But Cyril, fiom the very beginning
of his episcopacy, bade defiance to civil power, act-
ij^g in such manner as showed but too plainly that
he wou4d be kept within no bounds. Soon after
his installation, he caused, by his own authority,
the churches, which the Novitians were allowed to
have in Alexandria, to be shut up, seized on the
sacred utensils, and plundering the house of their
bishop, Theapemptus, drove him out of the <;ity,
stripped of every thing he possessed. Not long after
this, Cyril put himself at the head of a Christian
mob, and, without the knowledge of the governor,
took possession of the Jewish synagogue, drove the
Jews out of Aleyndria, pillaged tlieir houses, and
allowed the Christians — all Papists — who were
concerned with him in the riot, to appropriate to
themselves all their effects. This the governor
highly resented, and not only rebuked Cyril very
severely, for thus encroaching on his jurisdiction,
and usurping a power that did not belong to him,
l>ut wrote to the" emperor, complaining of him for
snatching the sword of justice from him, to put it
into the hands of the undeserving multitude.

This occasioned a misunderstanding, or rather
an avowed enmity between St, Cyril and the gov-
ernor. With the saint sided the clepgy, the greater
part of the mob, and the monks; with the gov-
ernor, the soldiery and the better class of citizens.
As the two parties were strangely animated against
each other, there happened daily skirmishes in the
streets of Alexandria. The friends of the gov*

82 8TKOP918 or POPERY, •

•

ernor, generally speaking, made their party good,
having the soldiery on their side. But one day, as
the governor was going out in his chariot, attended
by his guards, he found himself, very unexpectedly,
surrounded by no fewer than five hundred monks.
The monks were, in th5se days, the standing army
of the bishops, but are now of the Pope's alone.
The monks in the service of St. Cyril, having sur-
rounded the governor's chariot, dispersed the small
guard that attended ft, feW upon him, dangerously
wounded him, and determined to put an end to the
quarrel between him and St. Cyril, by taking his
life.

The citizehs, alarmed at his danger, flew to
his rescue, put the' cowardly monks to flight, and
having seized on the monk by whom the governor
was wounded, delivered him into- his hands. The
governor, to deter others, caused the monk to be
put to death. But St. Cyril, parity to reward the
zeal which the monk had exerted in attempting to
assassinate his antagonist, caused him to be honored
as a holy martyr: The partizans of St. Cyril, en-
raged at the death of the monk, and -under the
advice of this Romish saint, determinecl to revenge
it; and the person they singled out among the
friends of the governor to wreak their rage and
revenge on, was one who, of all the inhabitants of
Alexandria, deserved it the least. This was the
famous and Celebrated Hypatia, the wonder of her
age for beauty, for virtue, and knowledge. She
"keipt a public school of philosophy in Alexandria,
where she was bom, and her reputation was so
great, that not only disciples flocked from all parts
to hear her, but the greatest philosophers used to
consult her as an oracle, with respect to the most
abstruse points of astr^nomy^ geometry, and the

▲S IT WAS AND A8 IT IS. 83

Platonic philoeophy, which she was particularly
irelL versed in. Though she was very beautiful,
md freely conversed with men of all ranks, yet
hey were so awed by her known virtue and mod-
esty, that none ever presumed to show, in her pres-
)Dce, the least symptom of passion. The gov-
smor entertained the highest opinion of her abili-
les, often consulted her, and in all perplexed cases
governed himself by her advice, ^s she was the
person in Alexandria whom iie most valued, St.
Dyril and his friends, to .wound him the more
effectually, entered into a conspiracy to destroy
his beautiful and innocent lady.

This barbarous resolution being taken, as she
vas one day returning home in her chariot, a band
if the dregs of the people, encouraged and headed
»y one of- St Cyril's priests, attacked her in her
hariot, pulled her out of it, and throwing her on
he ground, dragged her to the great church called
ysesareum; there they stripped her naked, and
vith sharp tiles, either brought with them or found
here, continued cutting, tearing, and mangling her
lesh, till nature, yielding to pain, she expired under
heir hands. Her death did not satisfy their rage
ind fury. They tore her body in pieces, dragged
ler mangled -limbs through all the streets of Alex-
mdria, and then gatheiing them together, burned
hem. Such was the end of the famous Hypatia,
;he most learned person of the age she lived in ;
3Ut she was not a Roman Catholic. Can you,
Americans, believe that this very Cyril is now a
saint in the Roman Catholic church ; that he is
iaily prayed to, honored, and worshipped by Pa-
pists ? Can you believe that the Catholics whom
you employ in your houses, the nuns to whom yt)u
intrust the education of your t^hildren, daily invoke
the intercession of this murderous Cyril ?

84 STNOPSIS X>F POPERT,

And think you, fellow-citizens, that the spirit of
the Popish bishop, Cyril, has died with him, or
thai the church, which approved of his conduct,
would refuse to sanction a similar act at this day ? .
If you do, you are mistaken. Was the conduct
of Cyril ever censured by the church ? Were the
murders and atrocities which he committed, an^
caused to be committed, even disapproved by the
holy mother ? If they were, I would ask at what

• council was it doiie ? Where and when was such
a council held ? Who, was the presiding Pope ?
The fact is, so far from incurring the displeasure
of the Romish church, this notorious Popish m\ir-
derer of Jews and heretics was canonized and
sainted; and similar distinctions would be now
awarded to him who would commit similar crimes,
if his holiness the Pope deemed it prudent to have
such crimes committed.

We saw an instance of the spirit which act-

• uated Cyril, some years ago, in this city, when,
in the case of the Ursuline Convent, to which I
have already referred, every Papist within fifty
miles of Boston, who was able to bear arms, volun-
teered his aid to his bishop, in taking vengeance
upon our citizens, merely because they would not
sanction among them the existence of a house,
called a nunnery, and used as a jail, for the con-
finement of some of our most virtuous females,
against their will. Had Miss Reed, who escaped
from that den of profligacy, been caught by her
Popish pursuers, and without the knowledge of our
citizens, what would have been her fate? She
might not have bq^n torn to pieces, as Hypatia was,
but her torments would not have been less cruel.
She would have been kept upon her bare knees,
perhaps ten hours in the twenty-four, for months.

/
AS IT WAS AND AS IT IS. 85

She would, be obliged to pray to the same St.
Cyril, and » string of such vagabonds, for the re-
nvisaion of her sins. She would be compelled to
kiss the ground and lick it with her tongue, at
fcStated intervals, and bread and water her diet, until

She zeal of her holy confessors was perfectly satis-
led. And if tKose who aided her escape were de-
tected, what would have been their fate ? Thanks
to our republican government, they could not be
punished in this country; but Ifad they committed
the deed under a purely Catholic government, the
infallible church would consign them to the inqui-
sition, and have broken them upon the rack.

This is the church, and her members are the men,
whom you are countenancing amongst you. The
Romish church never surrendered the right which
she once claimed of destroying heretics. She only
suspends it for the moment, until her strength and
nunfbers shall enable her to enforce it. But there
are spme who* will not believe this, especially
when Catholic priests and bishops deny it. Many
Protestants, . who are natives of this country,
and unacquainted with Roman Catholic doc-
trines, will not believe it. Many, even, of our
Protestant clergymen will scarcely believe it ; such
is the craft and consummate falsehood of priests and
bishops, that I have never met with one Protestant
who entertained the. most remote idea that keeping
no faith with heretics, and persecuting them to
death, formed any portion of the doctrine of the
church of Rome.

This is owing to the fact of their being bom in
a free country, at a distance from the seat of Rom-
ish power, and their having little access and no
acquaintance with the standard works of Popery.
Many, even, of the native born Americans, who

86 SYNOPSIS OF POFEHT,

have become Roman Catholics, know little or
nothing of the doctrines of the churclk into which
they have permitted themselves to be seduced. I
will hazard the assertion, that there are not ten lay
members amongst them, in the United States, who
have read the works of Belarmine, the canons, or
decrees of the various councils that 'have been hel^
in the Popish church, or even the corpus juris car
nonici, containing the decrees of the council of
Trent. •

If the writings of De La Hogue, used in the
college of Maynooth, Ireland, or the works of An-
toine or Den, taught in that college when I was a
student there, were thoroughly read, and the doc-
trines contained in those standard works of Popery
understood, there is not a mojal man living who
would not shun the church of Rome, as a thing
too unclean, too impure, too licentious, too wicked,
too corrupt, and of too persecuting a character to
be allowed to exist at all. This their priests well
know ; and, having recently discovered that a few
copies of Den's " Theology " had found their way
into this coimtry, they have the unblushing effrontery
to deny that his work w^ ever approved of by the
church, or was ever received as such in any college
in Ireland. I studied in^the college of Maynooth,.
and have read speculative theology under Dr. De La
Hogue, and moral theology under Dr. Antoine, in
the same class with several priests i\ow in this
coxmtry, and among other works which we read in
that class was the " Moral Theology " of the Rev.
Peter Den ; especially his treatise de Peccatis.

I have the pleasure of an 'acquaintance with
some native Americans who are become Roman
Catholics. They are men of honor, moral worth,
and possess highly cultivated minds. They were

AS IT WAS AND AS IT IS. 87

religious men ; and ^deeming a connection with
sonnie church to be necessary, and seeing nothing
of the Romish church but its seductive and impos-
ing ceremonies, they unii^d themselves with it, or,
if they happened to hesitate In joining it, and
deemed it necessary to Consult with Catholic
priests and bishops,- these crafty Jesuits soon fur-
nished them witl^ Catholic works manufactured
for such occasions, and unobjectionable to the most
pious Christian ; taking good* care, at the same
time, to keep out of their way such works as I.
have alluded to, from whicli they may learn that
there is no religion in the Popish church, and
that it is no more than a political machine, devised
for the suppression of republicanism, knowledge,
and the liberties of man.

Let us pass over the time which intervened be-
tween the fourth and twelfth centuries. The his-
tory of the Popes and the Romish church, during
that period, is replete with crimes committed by
Popes, and atrocities sanctioned by the church, at
^he bare mention of which humanity shudders.
The very earth is almost saturated with the blood
which Popish despots caused to be shed under the
mask of religion, but, in reality, for the advance-
ment of their own temporal power.

I will now show that the spirit of Cyril had not
died with him. During the reign of Pope Inno-
cent III., that holy pontiff discovered that there
was, in the province of Narbonne and in several
other provinces of the south of France, a religious
sect, called the Albigenses, who presumed to differ
from the Romish church, and had the audacity to
believe that the Bible was the only rule of faith.
They rejected the external rites of the Romish
church, except baptism and the Lord's supper.

88 SYNOPSIS OF POPERT,

They 'had no faith in images, indulgences, and
other such semi-pagan mumraeries. Auriculax
confession and fehe forgiveness of sins by hian they
rejected as impious. They looked upon nunneries
as places of -sin, instituted by priests, as a sort of
substitute for the marriage of the clergy. They
demolished such of them as were in existence
among them, and declared tl^ marriage of the
clergy as lawful and honorable. They scouted at
the idea of the temporal jurisdiction of the Pope
over the nations of the earth, and looked upon him
as emphatically the Man of Sin.

These crimes, of course, were not long over*
looked by the infallible church ! They were here-
sies. These people were heretics, and the holy
mother, in the plenitude of her affection for her
strayed children, determined that they should be
exterminated. But how was this to be done?
The holy father. Pope Innocent III., was not
long in determining. He sent two spies amongst
them, of the names of Guy and Regnier. These
were Mohks, whose hands were already stained
with blood. They were empowered by the Pope,
to use their own discretion in checking the her-
esy of .the Albigenses by fire, sword, faggot, or
the inquisition, which employed all those means
upon such occasions.

The Albigenses however, were so numerous,
their lives so pure, so chaste and correct, that
this was not easily accomplished ; and hb holiness
had to preach a crusade against them, and pub-
lished a bull addressed to all the anthprities of
southern France, declaring them accursed and 6sjr-
conmiuniccttedy and giving absolution to all who
should murder them and take possession of their
property. Here are the words of the bull.^ ''Ac*

AS IT WAS AND AS IT 15. 89

cording to the canonical sanctions of the holy
fathers, no faith ought to be kept with those
who do not keep faith with God, or are separated
from the communion of the faithful " — ^ Papists.
"We release, by our apostolical authority, all
those who deem themselves bound to them by any
oath, either of alliance or fealty ; we permit every
Catholic man to seize their persons, to take their
lands, and keep them for the purpose of extirpa-
ting heresy."

Here, Americans, is a specimen of true, genuine
Popery, as Innocent expresses it, *^ sanctioned hy
the canons and holy fathers of the Romish
chnrchJ^ People of New England, what think
you of it ? Bear in mind that this is not the act of
a Tew fanatics ; it is not tlie belief of a few zeal-
ots. If it were, it would be wrong to charge it to
the Romish church. All denominations have had
among them fanatics ; but the extravagances of a
few individuals are not chargeabfe to the body to
which they might have belonged. Even our New
England Presbyterian forefathers had among them
persecutors; but who, in his sound mino^ could
charge this to the Presbyterian church ? There is
nothing in their creed or doctrines which sanctions
the persecutibn of those who differ from them, and
there the Romish church differs from all others.
The persecution and destruction of heretics, and
the corJfiscation of their property, is an integral
part of the Roman Catholic faith, and the watch-
word of Papists.

The crusade against these unfortunate Albigen-
ses commenced its march about the year 1209.
Indulgences were offered to all who would unite
in the war, and history informs us that the Pope
and hj^ vassals in the church raised an army of

8*

90 8TJVOP8I8 or FOPEBT,

monks and pious Papists, amounting to between
three and five thousand men, who were to serve
for forty days ; at the termination of which, the
Pope, in one of his heavenly transports, saw that
« every one of the sect of the Albigenses should be
massacred.'^ To this army his hoHness caused to
be added, by an oiSer of indulgences, multitudes
of peasants, with scythes and clubs, who were to
be under the command of monks, and whose pecu-
liar duty it was, to slaughter the wives and chil-
dren of these heretics, while their husbands and
fathers were engaged in the field with their
adversaries. Horrible ! Yet this is a true picture
of what has beeuj and what unll be in this country,
at some future day, should Popery gain the ascen-
dancy.

It is- much to be lamented that the Christian
League, as it is termed, had not looked to this,
in place of going abroad in search of objects
worthy of their philanthropy. They seem to me to
have acted like a man who, while his own house
is in a blaze, runs out to jsee if there be any of
his neighbors' houses on fire, and leaves his own
to smoulder into ruins. Assuredly, such a man
would not be deemed prudent, nor should he even
be considered sane.

Far be it from me to think or speak disrespect-
fully of the pious and reverend gentlemen who
compose that league ; but their solicitude^or the
welfare of a foreign country and a foreign people
appears to me strange, when all their charities are
much more needed at home, They desire the
suppression of Popery, especially in Italy, where
it is kept alive by Austrian bayonets and Popish
bulls, and where it will live until those bayonets
are broken and those bulls are burned. T|;^ey can

AS IT WAS AKB AS TT IS. 91

no more suppress Popery in Italy, than they could
confine a fire with a flaxen band.

The continuance of Popery depends upon this
country alone. Extinguish it in the United States,
and it dies every where. The old world is sick of
it ; it has cursed it long enough. It is for us alone
to say whether it shsdl live "or die. Americans
alone can sound the death knell of Popery ; and,
if this Christian League will unite their energies
and bring them all to bear, in excluding Popery
from the United States, they will be conferring a
blessing, not only upon this, but upon the old world.

But to return to our subject. Cruel, beyond
measure, were the sufferings of the Albigenses, a
few instances of which I beg to lay before my
readers, as specimens of Popish charity and their
mode of fulfilling that holy commandment, ^* Thou
shalt love thy neighbor as thyself." When the
Pope's army arrived at a place called Beziers, the
citizens were, of course, alarmed. The Pope's
legate sent many messengers among them, advising
them to give up such heretics, with their wives
ahd children, as continued obstinate among them.
They replied in the following words — ^^ Bather
than be base enough to do what is required of us^
and abandon our religious principles^ we unll eat
our children first, and our wives will die with us^^^
On receiving this answer, the Pope's army, or
rather incarnate devils,* rushed upon them so sud-
denly, and in such numbers, that they had to
surrender, after little or no resistance.

There were many among them who were not
heretics, but, seeing the injustice done to their fel-
low-citizens, and knowing the purity of their lives,
united with them in resisting oppression. Spme

02 SYNOPSIS OF POPERT,

of the most mercifuiof thf Pope's armyy entertain-
ing scruples as to what should be done to those who
were not heretics and happened to fall into their
hands, deemed it a duty which they owed to hobf
mother, to consult the Pope^ legate upon this oc-
casion ; and what, Christian reader, think you was
the reply of this representative of the Roman
Catholic church 7 What was the answer of this
imbodiment of Popery ? It was what it would be
this day, under similar circumstances. — ^^JSaU them
all ; the Ijord will know his own! " At this^ an-
swer, the bells rung, by order of this legate,
and never ceased to toll, until fifteen thousand *
were butchered upon the spot, according to the ac-
count given by the legate .himself; although a
contemporary historian, named Bernard Itier, and
much better authority than this blood-thirsty legate,
informs us that thirty-eight thousand were slaugh-
tered in cold blood.

During this time. Pope Innocent and the infalli-
ble church were not idle in other parts of France.
Wherever heresy existed, or heretical blood was to
be shed, there were to be found the representatives
of the holy church, until not a vestige of the Prot-
estant doctrines of the Albigenses was to be seen.
Nearly all its ministers and its followers suffered the
most cruel deaths, and their church was drowned
in the blood of its defenders. But the han of sin
being still apprehensive that some vestige of Prot-
estantism might remain, or that the life of some
unfortunate member of the Albigenses might have
escaped, the Popish murderers established, in those ^
countries, that accursed tribunal, the Inquisition ;
some of whose members appeared in the guise and
occupation of farmers, to act as spies among that

AS« IT WAS AND A8 IT IS. 93

class of people ; others as merchaats, mechanics,
tf&c. To these were added feiAale Jesuits, some of
"Whom were shop-keepers, milliners, servant-maids,
&c. ; and, 8uitabl7 educated, whenever necessary,
^were ready to act their parts well.

Thus no mail was safe. No family, no lady, was
. safe. They dreaded the very air they breathed.
They knew. not when the officers of the inquisition
-would call them from their homes, t&eir children,
their hui|t)ands, and their wives, to be cast into
the dungeon of the inquisition, without knowing
their offence, or who accused them.

This was Popery in the twelfth century ; this was
Popery in the fourth century ; and this is Popery in
the nineteenth century. Americans, are you aware
that there are Jesuit nuns now in this country?
Are you aware of the reasons why they are so
anxious to get Protestant rather than Catholic
scholars into their schools ? The reason is this ;
they are in this country spies upon your actions.
Your thWghts,'your designs, your influence, the
probable amount of your wealth, and your political
opinions, are known to your children. These Jes-
uit nuns worm themselves into your confidence;
the young hearts of their pupils are soon laid bare
to these artful hypocrites ; and before you scarcely
notice the absence of your children, your domestic
secrets are known to some Popish agent, who makes
such Use of them as the holy church may direct.
This is done daily. I make this statement of my
own knowledge, and I warn you, if you value your
^domestic happiness, or the peace and harmony of
your children, never permit one of them, male or
female, to enter a school kept by nuns or Jesuits.

From these observations, the reader must have
seen that Popery, in its teachings and actions, ia.

94 SYNOPSIS OF POPERT,

and has been, the same always. What, then, be-
comes of the assertions, so frequently made by Ro-
man Catholic priests and bishops, that the doctrines
of the church, in relation to heretics, have been re-
laxed ? Certain it is, at all events, that there has
been no mitigation in the treatment of heretics
do\i(n .to the thirteenth century. Let us come
down a little farther, and see if any had taken place
during the thirteenth, century. We discover none
whatever. •

It was during this century, that the '^ Greater
Excommunication," as it is called, was pronounced
* by the Pope, and the whole church, against all
who should interfere with the clergy in -the exer-
cise of their temporal or spiritual rights. The
curse was pronounced, by every parish priesti
throughout the Papal world, four times sflyeai^ —
Christmas^ Easter^ Pentecost^ and All-HcMotos'
day. The curse is in tl\e following words, a^d is
now repeated on the same days, by the Pope and
all the priests and bishops of the Romish murch, not
publicly, — that they dare not do, — but in private.
^' Let them be accursed, eating and drinking, walk-
ing and sitting, speaking, and holding their peace,
waking and sleeping, rowing and riding, laughing
and weeping, in house and in field, in water and on
land, in all places ; cursed be their heads and their
thoughts, their eyes and their ears, their tongues
and their lips, their teeth and their throats, their
shoulders and their breasts, their feet and their le^s,
their thighs and their inward parts ; let -them re-
main accursed, from the sole of their foot to the
crown of their heads ; and just as this candle (the
curser has a lighted candle in his hand, which he
extinguishes) is deprived of its present light^ so
let them be deprived of their souls in hell.'^

AS IT WAS AKD AS IT IS. 95

*

■

Sach is the curse which the Pope pronounced
against all heretics in the thirteenth century ! and
however surprised you may be, a similar one i»
pronounced once a year against ail Protestants.
There are many Americans who cannot believe
that such a curse as the above, has ever been pro-
nounced against a fellow-being. I have conversed
Tvith some intelligent Protestants in this city; who
doubted whether such an anathema was ever
uttered, and seemed struck with horror, as well as
surprise, when I informed them that it was pro-
nounced against myself in Philadelphia in presence
of, at least, three thousand people. The reader
must know, by this, that I am a heretic, and look
upon the introduction of Popery into the United
Stat^, as the greatest evil which Providence has
permittea to fall upon us. Arise, ^llow-citizens, in '
the fulness of your power, — every Protestant in
this country is a heretic, as weU as myself. We are
all annually cursed and damned by a set of Popish
agents, bishops, and priests ; men who,- from my
own personal acquaintance with them, I know to
be unworthy of your friendship or your support ;
who walk your streets with apparent sanctimonious-
ness, btit whose lives in private are such as delicacy
forbids me to mention.

These men, under pretence of being democrats,
are attacking your liberties with the club of Her-
cules. They are acquiring gigantic force. You
have recently witnessed the truth of this assertion ;
they fancied they had strength enough to cut yo\i
down as the legate of Pope Innocent did the Al-
bigenses in the twelfth century. They bid defiance
to reason, argument, and the law of your land ; and
it grieves me to -see every thing yielding to their
power, as chaff before the wind. But Providence

96 SYNOPSIS OF POPEBT,

interposed, and these miserable dupes of Romish
priests received a check, which, if followed up,
will have a salutary effect in future. But, I pray
you, be on your guard ; watch the movements (rf
f^pists among you ; have no confidence in them ;
have as little as possible to do with them. Trust
them in nothing which may either directly or in-
directly involve their religion. I most solemnly
appeal to our national and state legislatures, to ex-
clude them from every office of honor, -profit, or
trust, while they have any connection whatever,
9piritueU or temporal, with the Pope of Rome.
Believe them not, when they tell you that their
allegiance to the Pope is only spiritual, I under-
stand what they mean by spiritual allegiance.

From what has been stated, it is clear that no mod-
ification had taken place in Popish pretensrons dur-
ing the thirteenth century, neither had the church
relaxed one iota in her persecutions of heretics. On
the contrary, her cruelties increased-the declarations
of Popish priests to the contrary notwithstanding.

Let us now see what has been the conduct of
the Popish churchjtowards heretics, from the latter
end of the thirteenth century to the conclusion of
the fourteenth.

How was the illustrious John Wickliffe, pro-p
fessor of divinity in Oxford, treated by the church
of Rome, during the reign of Boniface IX. But
let us first see what the crimes of Wickliffe
were, for which he had been so severely punished
b^ the holy Roman church. The illbstrious and
good Wickliffe, the founder of the Reformatioif,
whose very name every- Christian venerates^ main-
tained, 1st, That the Scriptures contain all truths
necessary to salvation ; 2d, That in the Scriptures
only, is to be fouiid, a perfect rule of Christian

P AS IT WAS AND AS IT IS. 97

practice ; Sd, He denied the authority of the Pope
in temporal matters ; 4th, He maintained that the
Pope was the Man of Sin, the son of perdition^ to
which St. Paul alluded, ''sitting as God in the
temple of Ckkl." As soon as the opinions of Wick*
liffe were ascertained, Gregory XL, the ruling
Pope, addressed a bui^ to the primate of England,
' ordering him to have Wickliffe arrested and impris-
oned, until he received further instructions.

The popularity of Wickliffe was such, that this
step was considered dangerous ; and we find that
nothing further was done to this eminently pious
man, than banishing him from the university of
Oxford into private life, where he died in peace, and
went to his grave with the blessings of. the good
and the virtuous. But this did not satisfy the
Pope, nJr the infallible church. O, no. The holy
mother never forgives a heretic, dead or alive. As
soon as Wickliffe departed this life, in the sixty-first
year of his age, the church and Papists exhibited
the wildest symptoms of joy. One of their writ-
ers, in giving an account of his death, uses the fol-
lowing language : '' On the day of St. Thomas,
the martyr, that limb of the devil, enemy of the
church, deceiver of the people, idol of heretics,
mirror of hypocrites, author of schism, sower of
hatred, and inventor of lies, John Wickliffe, was, by
the immediate judgment of God, suddenly struck
with a palsy, which seized all the members of his
body, when he was ready to vomit forth his blas-
phemies against the blessed St. Thomas, in a ser-
mon which he had prepared to preach that day I "

But holy mother was not yet satisfied. She had
not the felicity of hanging Wickliffe ; her ears
were"* not delighted with his groans upon the rack ;

9 .

98 8TNOP8IS or POPKETy «

she did not hear his flesl^. hissing amid the flames
of the faggot, nor his bones breaking upon the
wheel ; she must, however, have all the revenge
left to satiate her malice. Thirty years after the
death of Wickliffe, the infallible council of Con-
stance, at which the Pope presided, passed an order
that the body and bones of John Wickliffe, if they
might be known and discerned from the bodies of
faithful people — Papists — should be taken from
the ground and thrown far away from the burial
of any church, according to the canon laws and
decrees.

This decree was not put in execution for thirteen
years afterwards. His grave was then opened and
bis body disinterred with great solemnity, and in the
presence of the Catholic bishop of Lincoln, it was
publicly burned, and the ashes thrown into a neigh-
boring rivulet. But the indignities offered to
Wickliffe, while living, and after his death, were
not sufficient to appease the malice of Papists.
Blood, and blood alone, could satiate their thirst for
revenge. His followers were hunted up and mer-
cilessly put to death. Among the first of his fol-
lowers, who suffered, was Lord Cobham, a noble-
man^ distinguished for his valor, devotion to his
country, and true piety. His chai^M^ter was with-
out blemish, and his morals and patriotism un-
doubted ,* but he was a heretic ; he was among the
followers, of Wickliffe ; he believed in the Holy
Scriptures. This was crime enough, and for this
he was excommunicated. Cobham appealed to the
Pope, but the appeal was refused : he was cite'd
again ; he was offered absolution, if he would sue
for it, and submit to the Popish church. This he
refused ; the consequence was, he was thrown into

y

' AS tr WAS AND AS IT IS. 99

prison, from which he escaped and was not retaken
for nearly four years, he was, however, finally cap-
tured after a most heroic resistance.

He might have escaped again, being an over-
match for his captor, had not a pimis Roman Cath-
olic toomany while he was nobly defending him-
self, taken up a stool, and with a desperate blow,
broken both his legs. In this condition he was
recommitted to prison until he was sentenced to
death for his heresy. The sentence was, "that
he should be drawn from his place of confinement
through the city of London, to Temple Bar, there
to be hanged, and burned hanging." The historian
Bale gives a most jafifecting account of his exe-
cution.

" On the day appointed," says Bale, "he was brought
out of the Tower with his arms bound behind him,
having a very cheerful countenance. Then he was
laid upon a hurdle as though he had been a most
heinous traitor to the crown, and so drawn forth
into St. Giles's field, where they had set up a new
gallows. When he arrived at the place of exe-
cution, and taken from the hurdle, he fell down de-
voutly on his knees, and prayed God to forgive his
enemies. Then he stood up and beheld the multi-
tude, exhorting them, in the most godly manner, to
follow the laws of God, written in the Scriptures, and
to beware of such teachers as they see contrary to
Christ, in their conversation and living, with many
other special councils. Then was he hanged up
there, by the middle, in chains of iron, and so con-
sumed alive in the fire, praising the name of the
Lord, so long as life lasted. In the end he com-
mended his soul into the hands of God, and so, most
Christianly, departed home, his body being re-
solved to ashes,"

. 1LSJCV^^^>^

100 STMonis or popebv,

Thus was a noblemai^ and a noble wu&wuku|
most barbarously put to death for believing that the
Bible contained God's truth ; and therein differing
from the Roman church, which teaches that the
traditions of the fathers, and dreams of monks, are
of equal authority.

Followers of Wickliffe, — and there are many ai
you in this country, who are an honor to his
name, — have you ever reflecte4 that there are
nearly two millions of Papists in these United
States, who entertain the same belief that the mur-
derers of Cobham did ; who believe that you are all
excommunicated^ as he was, and who, if they had
the power, would consign yourselves, your wivesy
and children, to the same fate ? and who'are taught
by their church, that, in so doing, they would be
serving God? Romish priests may deny this.
They do well. Otherwise, an indignant p6pulace
would tear th^m to pieces, or at least banish them
from this land of freedom.

But I tell the priest or bishop, who dares deny
it, that they are liars, — wilful and deliberate liars.
I too have been a priest, and I solemnly declare to
the world, and to my fellow-citizens of the United
States in particular, that to keep no faith with her*
tticSy but to destroy them^ is one of the most solemn
duties of a Catholic ; and I go further, and state to
you, that if a bishop or priest denies this^ upon
oath^ you are not to believe him; his church re-
quires from him to keep no faith with heretics, but
to destroy and extirpate them. It allows him also
to deny, under oath, the existence of such an^obli*
gat ion.

Do you, followers of WicklifTe, require any proof
of this ? It is a serious charge, and should not be
lightly made. I therefore refer yon to the letters of

AS IT WAS AND AS IT IS. 101

Martin IT., who was Pope in the year 1417, and
considered one of the best Popes the Romish
church ever had. This Pope, in one of his letters
to the Duke of Lithuania, makes use of the following
strong and emphatic language. '' Be assured^ thou
sinnest mortally, if thou keep thy faith xoith here"
ticsJ^ St. Thomas Aquinas teaches the same doc-
trine. Innocent VIII., who was Pope in 1484, de*
clares '^ that all persons who are houiid by any con-
tract whatever to heretics are at liberty to break it^
even though they had sworn an oath to fulfil tV."
You here see, that I have done no injustice to Ro-
man Catholics, in putting you on your guard
against them, and charging them with a willingness
to destroy yourselves, your wives and children, as
heretics, had they power and opportunity of doing
so. I am supported by the authority of Pope
Martin V., and Pope Innocent VIII. ; and though
in your estimation, those blood-thirMy vagabonds
may give no weight to my testimony, still it cannot
fail to be highly satisfactory to Papists. Some of
the Catholics may tell you, that the followers of
Wickliffe were a seditious people ; that they threat-
ened to overthrow the civil institutions of the
country ; that all law and order were set at defiance
by them ; and that this was the cause of their per-
secution. This is false in fact — it is historically
false.

If the followers of WicklifTe, or Lollards, as they
were called, were disturbers of the peace ; if their lives
were seditious, disorderly, and rebellious, why were
they not indicted, under some statute of the realm,
made and provided to take cognizance of such crimes?
"Why were they not even accused of , such crimes?
Was the meek, mild, and learned John Wickliffe,
accused or indicted for disturbing the peace ? Was

102 sTMorsis or formmtj

it for disturbing the peace, that his venerable bones
Were disinterred thirty years after being deposited in
the cold grave ? Was it for disturbing the peace, and
for riotous proceedings, his bones were subsequently
burned, and their ashes thrown into the next river ?
Was it jfor disturbing the peace, the learned and brave
Cobham was hung in iron chains, by the middle.

No such accusation has ever been brought against
these great and good men, or against thousands
who suffered with them. They were accused only
of heresy. Papists were their accusers; Papists
were their judges; and Papists were their execu-
tioners.

But the malice of those bloo(|i-thirsty Catholics
was not even then satiated. It is as fresh nowj as
it was then. Papists are not content, that'hundreds
of years ago, Wickliffe and his followers should be
persecuted, and the greater portion of them massa-
cred and burned. Their memories^ also, are objects
of Popish hatred, even to this day on which I
write. They represent them as enemies of the
human race. As despisers of chastity and moral-
ity. You will probably see these charges advanced
against them in the Popish presses throughout the
United States. But recollect, Americans, that age
does not improve the piety of Papists. The older
holy mother gets, the harder becomes her heart,
and the more bitter her virulence. I might satisfy
you, if necessary, on the testimony, of the most
respectable Protestant writers, that there lived not
in the world, a people more simple, more pious, or
virtuous than the Waldenses, or Wickliffites. It may
be said of them, with truth, '' qualis pater tales
filiV^ But I will not refer to Protestant authority ;
knavish, lying. Popish priests may question it i I
refer you, for the character of this persecuted

AS IT WAS AND AS IT IS.

10$

peopley to an early Popish historian, Plorimond —
History of Heresy, book viu ch. 7*

" They *^ — the^ Waldenses — says this writer,
** have nothing in their mouths but Christ the Sav-
iour — they know nothing else than Jesus Christ.
These people read the Bible continually, in such a
manner that they know all the books of it by heart."
Horrid people these Wickliffites must be, to read
the Bible until they know it by heart ! And as
these Bible-reading and Bible-loving people now
constitute a vast majority of our citizens, I call up-
on them to rise in the full force of their moral pow-
er, and ward off from themselves and their children,
the curse of Popery, or the fate of Wickliffe and
his followers will assuredly be theirs. Many of
you, Americans, are follojvers of Wickliffe. You
believe as he believed ! You live as he lived ! You
love peace as he loved it; Do you wish to con-
tinue as you are now ? Or will you permit a flood
of vile priests, monks, and nuns, to overrun your
country", and seduce your children from the paths
of virtue, in which your own example and the
perusal of their Bibles have taught them to
walk?

I now call your attention to the belief and prac-
tice of the Romish church in the fifteenth century,
and you will find that hefesy and heretics were
still persecuted by her. Witness the conduct of
Pope Innc^ent VIII. toward the Vaudois. He-
s^nt one of his Jesuit legates amongst them, with
instructions to prevail on Louis XII. to extirpate
them from his dominions, without even hearing any
deputies which they might send him. The answer
of Louis did him mubh credit — " Though I were
at war with a Turk or the devil, I would hear what
he had to say for himself" They accordingly

104 SYNOPSIS OP POPERT.

made their defenre : and, upon this, the good Kiug
Louis sent commissioners to examine the state of
things among tliem. Tlie following was their re-
port, as history informs us : '■ Having made a strict
inquiry into their mode of living, we cannot dis-
cover the least shadow of the crimes imputed to
them. On the contrary, it appears that they pious-
ly observe the Sabbath, baptize their children after
the manner of the ]rimitivc church, and are thor-
oughly instructed in the doctrine of the apostles'
creed, and in the law of God.'* On hearing this
report, the king excfaimed, in a passion, addressing
himself to the Pope's legate — " By the holy mother
of God, these heretics, whom you and the Pope
ni^e me to destroy, are better men than you or my-
self." He, however, so^n departed this life, and
every man acquainted with history knows what
their sufferings were from the time of his death
down to the days of Cromwell, who, whatever his
faults may have been, fired with indignation at the
barbarities committed by the Romish church, inter-
posed in behalf of those persecuted people, and
called upon Protestant princes and sovereigns to
aid him in protecting them.

I will not burden the reader with a history of
the sufferings of these people. It is familiar even to
our schoolboys. I must, however, repeat the fact,
that they were persecuted for no other reason than
because they believed the Bible contained all the
truths necessary to salvation, and because they did
not believe in all the mummeries of Popery. Will
Catholic bishops and priests still continue to assert
that their church does not teach them to persecute
heretics, and to hold no faith with them ? Will they
eontinue to assert, that the Pope of Rome does not
claim temporal as well as spiritual jurisdiction over

AS IT WAS AND AS IT IS. 106

the kingdoms of the earth ? or if they do, are we
compelled to listen to them ?

There is scarcely any one who does not recollect
the conduct of the holy see, as it is nicknamed,
towards Queen Elizabeth, on her ascension to the
throne of England. The queen sent a messenger
to the court of Rome, to inform the Pope of the
event. This was an act of state courtesy ; but his
holiness had the insolence to reply to the messen-
ger who represented his sovereign : " Tell your
mistress that England was held in fief of the apos-
toUc see; that she could not succeed, being ille-
gitimate ; nor could she contradict the declarations
made in that matter by his predecessors, Clement
VII. and Paul IIL Tell your mistress," said this
insolent ecclesiastic, " that it was great boldness in
her to assume the crown without my consent, for
which, in reason, she deserves no favor at my'
hands; yet if she will renounce her pretensions
and- refer herself wholly to me, I would show a
£itherly affection to her; and do every thing for her
that could consist with the dignity of the Roman

Fellow-citizens, do you want any other proof to
satisfy you that the Pope of Rome claims universal
jurisdiction over kings, que^hs, nations, kingdoms,
and all mankind ? It is drnly about three hundred
years since this occurred ; and is there evidence on
record that the Pope has resigned the prerogative
of universal dominion which he then claimed ?
You may laugh at the idea of his claiming it over
this country; but, mark what I tell you, some suc-
cessor of the present Pope will not only claim, but
exercise it in less than half the time that has
elapsed since the days of Elizabeth. Other objects
may divert your attention from this subject ; you

106 BTMOPSIS OF POPEBT,

may sleep on in faneied security, but your sleep
may be fatal.

'' America," as a talented writer (Giustiniani) ex-
presses it, ^'is the promised laud, the land of the
Jesuits' operations. To obtain the ascendency,
they have no need of a mercenary Swiss guards
or the assistance of the holy alliance^ but a majori-
ty of votes, which can easily be obtained by an
importation of Roman Catholics from Ireland, Ba-
varia, and Austria. Rome, viewed at a distance^
is a colossus ; near at hand, its grandeur diminishes,
its charm is lost. But the Jesuits are every where
the same— eunning, immoral, and sneaking in-
triguers, until they have obtained the ascendency.
Rome feels her weakness at home ; she knows her-
self to be a mere political institution, dressed in the
garment of Christianity. She takes good care to
uphold that holy militia^ the Jesuits, in order to
appear what she is not. It is a strife for existence.
I am not a politician," says this writer, '' but know-
ing the active spirit of Jesuitism, and the indif*
ference of the generality of Protestants, I have
no doubt whatever, that in ten years the Jesuits
wiU have a mighty influence over the ballot-box,
and in twenty they will direct it according to theic
own pleasure. Now tMey fawn, in ten years they
will menace, and in twenty command."

In this city they not only *' fawn," but they have
proceeded to "menace." Some of the knowing
ones among the Catholics now boast that they have
the power to govern this city, and they intend to
exercise it. This is no idle threat. *Even now,
though they are actually less in numerical strength
in the aggregate, than the Protestants, and pay far
less for the support of our free schools, they, never-
theless, have succeeded in depriving Protestant

AS IT WAS AND AS IT IS. 107

children of the privilege of using the Bible for a
school-book, as they have been wont to do. Prot-
estants may sleep on if they will, but they may be
assured that they are sleeping on the sides of a
burning volcano, and that ere long they will be
awakened, but too late, we feieir, by the angry
thunders of the upheaving fires within, which shall
scathe and desolate the fair heritage they now
enjoy.

I entreat yon, fellow-cttizens, never to forget the
solemn declaration of the father of your country :
^'Against the insidious wiles of foreign influence,
(I conjure you to believe me, fellow-citizens,) the
jealousy of a free people ought to be constantly
awake ; since history and experience prove, that
foreign influence is one of the most baneful foes of a
republican government." This is the warning of
the immortal Washington, and should not pass un-
heeded. To the same eff*ect spoke other revolu-
tionary patriots. Jeflerson says, " I hope we may
find some means in future of shielding ourselves
from foreign influence, political, commercial, or in
whatever form it may be attempted. I can scarcely
withhold myself from joining in the wish of Silas
Deane — that there were an ocean of fiie between
this and the old world." Afid Madison said, ** For-
eign influence is truly a Grecian horse to the re-
public. We cannot be too careful to exclude its
entrance."

The cruelty of Papists, the intrigue and craft of
Popes, the hypocrisy of Jesuits, the dynasties which
they have overthrown, the devastations and carnage
which they had occasioned, for centuries back,
were matters of historical notoriety, and were well
known to our pure-minded and clear-headed fore-
fathers. They dreaded similar occurrences in this

108 SYNOPSIS OF POPKRY,

happy republic, which they have bequeathed to us
as their trustees, to be handed down to posterity;
and hence arose their warnings to he on our guard
against all foreign interference with our institutions
or our country.

Ponder upon those warnings, and let each and
every Protestant in the Union pledge himself to
guard our liberties, as the apple of his eye. I speak
from experience. I am myself a foreigner by birth,
though a resident of this country for thirty years.
My life has been a checkered one. Born a Roman
Catholic in the south of Ireland, educated a Ro-
man Catholic priest, officiating in that capacity
for some years, here, as well as in my native coun-
try, and for many yesu^s a member of the bar ia
South Carolina and Georgia, I could not fail to
acquire a correct knoiy^edge of the doctrines and
practices of the Romish church. The resuh of my
experience is, that the doctrines of the Roman
Catholic church are fatal to the morals of any peo-
ple ; at variance with sound national policy and
pure religion. It is a rank and poisonous weed^
which will flourish even in the soil of liberty.
Would that I could eradicate it I Would that you
would enable me to tear up this Upas, which is
spreading its poison, from one end of our land to
the other ! Would that yon eould aid me in muz-
zling those Popish bloodhounds, whojare freely cours-
ing over our eastern mountttins and western valleys !
Already have they scented blood, and I warn you
to be on your guard or they will scent more.

I am no sectarian ; I am not the tool of any
party, either in chitrch or state. I have never
asked the countenance or support of any religious
denomination, nor has any ever been tendered to
me. I have stood alone in my opposition to that

JLS IT WAS AND AS IT IS. 109

hydra-headed monster, Popery. There is no abuse
which I have not received ; no calumny which has
not been heaped upon me ; no crime which they
have not accused me of ; no scurrilous epithet
which they have not applied to me. All this I have
met single-handed ; but I would bear it again,
rather than submit to the iniquitous doctrines
of Popery. I would bear it again, rather than sub-
mit, as native Americans have done, and are doing,
to be publicly denounced, as cowards and sons of
cowards and pirates.

But, fellow-citizens, they do not consider you
cowards and pirates alone ; they will, by-and-by,
apply to you a term, which you will better deserve.
It is sweet, it is a euphonious name, and I trust
you will bear it with as much Christian philan-
thropy, as you have that of cowards, and pirates —
Fools, It is the only ignominious term, in the
English language, which they have not applied to
myself, and I assure my fellow-citizens, natives of
this country, that if you are willing to be governed
by the Pope of Rome, and his priests, and bishops,
I shall never question your paramount claim to this
preeminent distinction. Can you bear the follow-
ing opprobrious language applied to you by the
Jesuit, now the Boston Pilot, the organ of the
bishop of that city., ^* How in the name of con-
science," says this Popish organ, " can a man have
the impudence to find fault with honest emigrants,
whose own fathers were emigrant pirates ? " You
are also complimented by the Literary and Catholic
Sentinel, another Popish press, in Philadelphia.
That blessed organ of Popery, the Sentinel, in its
comments upon a sermon delivered by that elo-
quent Presbyterian divine, McCalla, thus eulogizes
New England. He, Mr. McCalla, knew the char-

10

110 SYNOPSIS or ForcBT,

acter of his New England audience, that their
minds were warped by fanaticism, darkened by
bigotry, and vitiated by the abhorred, and atrocious
principles inculcated by the vile and sanguinary
wretcheSj called the Pilgrim Fathers, He well
knew that the mental capacity of the generality of
his hearers were chained down by ignorance."

Very flattering this, especially to Bostonians,
and their puritan fathers. Their fathers were san-
guinary wretches, if we believe Papists, and the
people of Boston are an ignorant set of boobies.
You, Americans, may bear all this ; you know not
the designs of Popery, but I do ; and while I have
liberty to write, I will write for liberty, and in
opposition to Popery. Truth ma)'^ be unpalatable
to Papists, but it is my duty to record it.

Among the instructions which I received from
my bishop in Ireland, when he sent me out to this
coimtry as a Catholic priest, was one to which I
beg to call your attention. The same is given to
every priest in the United States. " Let it be your
first duty to extirpate heretics, but be cautious as
to the manner of doing it. Do nothing without
consulting the bishop of the dioeese, in which you
may be located ; and if there be no bishop there,
advise with the metropolitan bishop. He has his
instructions from Rome, and he understands the
character of the people. Be sure not to permit the
members of our holy church, who may be under
your charge, to read the Bible. It is the source of
all heresies. Whenever you see an opportunity of
building a church, make it known to your bishop.
Let the land be purchased for the Pope, and his
successors in office. Never yield or give up the
divine rights which the head of the church has, by
virtue of the Keys, to the government of North

AS IT WAS AND AS IT IS. Ill

America, as well as every other country. The con-
fessional will enable you to know the people
by degrees; with the aid of that holy tribunal^
and our bishops, who are guided by the spirit of
God, we may expect, at no distant day, to bring
over North America to the bosom of our holy
church."

This needs some explanation. By extirpating
heresy, he meant the conversion of heretics to
the Romish church, without violence, if possible,
if not, by such means as the Romish church has
adopted iti all ages. You have already seen what
these means were — I ueed not now repe-at them ;
but you shall see them more plainly, when I lay
before you, as I intend to do hereafter ; the ways
and means which the church has adopted, to bring
over the Huguenots from the darkness of Protest-
ant error, to the glorious light of Popish truth.

The Bible, as you are aware, is a forbidden
book in the Romish church. I remember when
acting as Popish priest, in Philadelphia, having
ventured to suggest to the very Rev. Mr« De Barth,
then acting as vicar-general of that diocese,, the
advantages of educating the poor, and circulating
Che Bible among them. He scouted at the idea,
as heretical, and lodged a written complaint aigainst
me, before the archbishop of Baltimore, then
Romish metropolitan. I was reprimanded ver-
bally, through the aforesaid De Barth. He was too
crafty to send it in writing ; the Papists were not
then strong enough to forbid, openly, the reading of
the Bible. It was then too soon to seal up the
fountain of eternal life in this free country. The
most sympathizing Protestants could scarcely be-
lieve then, that in less than thirty years, Papists
would not only dare forbid it to be read^ by their

112 SYNOPSIS OW POFEET,

own people, and in their own schools, but cast it
out of Protestant schools, as they did the other
day in New York. What are we coining to, Amer-
icans ? Your ancestors have come to this country,
with no recommendations but holy lives ; with no
fortune but their pious hearts and strong arms;
with no treasure but the word of God.

Will you now permit Papists to cast those Bibles
out of your schools, to bum them on the public
streets, as they have done in the state of New
York, under the inspection of Popish priests, as
l^oved on th6 oath of several respectable witnesses?
That priest, however, did no more than every
})riest and bishop would do, did he deem it expedi-
ent; and here, fellow-eititehs, let me assure you,
that same power which authorizes that priest, or
ahy other priest, to bum your Bibles, also author-
izes him to bum every heretic or Protestant in this
country.

The sahie power which autborizisis them to bffi-
eiate s^ priests, empdwers them to destt&y her^icsj
whenever it is expedient ; and is ready to absolve
them from the commission of this foul deed. Saint
Thomas Aquinas, in his second book, chapter the
3d, pagiB 58, says : ^' Heretics, may justly be
killed." But you will answer, there is.no danger
6f this. They can never acquire the power to
enact any laws in this country which would sanc-
tioti such a doctrine. How sadly mistaken you
Aire ! How lamentably unacquainted with the se-
eiret springs or machinery of Popery ! I regret
that circumstances oblige me so often to introduce
m^ own name, but it cannot be well avoided, for
th^ purpose of explaining certain Popish transac-
tions in the United States. While I was a Romish
priest ill Philadelphia, and soon after my difference

AS IT WAS AND AS IT IS. 113

with the archbishop of Baltimore, in relation tothj9
introduction of the Bible, a consultation was held
between the Popish priests in the diocese of Philadel-
phia, and it was secretly resolved by them, that the
best mode of checking Hogan^s heresy^ as they
were pleased to term my advocating the reading of
the Bible, was to take possession of the church in
which I officiated, in the name of the Pope. They
accordingly wrote to his holiness, humbly praying
this MAN-GOD to send them out a bishop, and to
give him, and his successors in office, a lease of
St. Mary's church, in Philadelphia, and all the ap-
purtenances thereunto belonging. Accordingly his
ROYAL HOLINESS the Pope sent them a bishop w\x\^
the aforesaid lease. I was immediately ordered
out of the church ^ and having refused to depart, un-
less the trustees thought proper to remove me, this
emissary of the Pope, only a few days or weeks in
this country, had me indited and imprisotied for
disturbing public worship, or in other words, offi-
ciating in St. Mary's church, even with the full and
undivided consent of the trustees.

But the bishop's legal right was questioned ; the
case was brought before the supreme court of Penn-
sylvania, Chief Justice Tighlman presiding. I was
discharged from bail and custody, and the rights
of the trustees, under their charter from the state,
sustained. But the priests and bishops were not
content with this decision. They put their heads
once more together, and fancied that they dis-
covered another mode by which they could rob the
people of their rights, and defeat the intentions of
the donors of the property of St. Mary's church ;
and what was their plan, think you, fellow-citi-
zens ?

The bishop called a meeting of all the priests
10*

114 STHOPSIS or FOPEKT,

and leading Catholics in the diocese. ' Every lay
member was ordered to bring with him a hickory
stick. The meeting was held in the church of St
Joseph ; and at the hour of twelve at night, the
Romish bishop of the diocese of Pennsylvania, an
Irishman, not more than a few months in the coun-
try, attended in his pontificals, told the multitude
who were there assembled to lay down their sticks
in one pile, in order that he might bless them for
their use. This was done as a matter of course.
The bishop said mass, sprinkled holy water upon
the sticks, blessed them, and this done, the whole
party bound themselves by a solemn vow never to
eease until they elected a legislature in Pennsylvania
that would annul the charter of St. Mary's church ;
and, as an American citizen, I blush to state the fact,
they succeeded. The charter was annulled by an act
of the legislature/and propertyi worth over a million
of dollars, would have passed into the hands of the
Pope and his agents, were there not a provision in
the constitution of that state empowering the su-
preme court to decide upon the constitutionality of
the acts of the legislature.

We brought the question of the constitutionality of
the act, which annulled the charter, before the court,
Justice Tighlman still presiding. The court decided
in the negative, otherwise the tmstees and myself
would have been defeated ; I should have been fined
and imprisoned, and they ousted out of their trust.

This, I believe, was the fiurst attempt the Pope
has made to establish his temporal power in this
country ; and it is a source of consolation to me,
dearer almost than existence itself, to be the first to
meet this holy bull. If I have not strangled him,
and trampled him to death, 1 have, at least, the
comfort of. seeing his horns so blunted, that his

AS IT WAS AND AS IT IS. 116

beHowings have been, ever since, comparatively
harmless. But there seems a recuperative power in
the^EAST. He is again attempting to plant his foot
upon our soil, and establish his temporal power
amongst us ; and how is he trying to accomplish
this, fellow-citizens? The Papists have united
themselves together as a body, headed by their
priests, and resolved to c^rry, through the ballot
box, what they cannot otherwise accomplish, at
least for the present. Popish priests have all be-
come politicians ; they publicly preach peace, good
order, and obedience to the " powers that be," but
they tell the people in the confessional^ to disre-
gard those instructions, and stop at nothing which
may promote the interests of the church.

They have now, what they call " religfoas news-
papers," under the supervision of their bishops, bnt
in which not a word of pure religion, or Christian
charity, is to be found. They are political presses,
whose object is to overthrow our laws, our govern-
ment, and introduce, in their stead, anarchy and
confusion. These people — and here I allude to
Irish Catholics and their priests in particular
— have no regard for the obligations of an oath.
Let the priest only tell them that it is for the good
of the churchy and they will stop at no crime ; no, not
even at murder ; and they are daily becoming more
audacious, in consequence of the support which they
receive from unprincipled politicians, and the mor-
bid indifference of Protestants.

I have shown you, in a former page, that the in-
crease of Catholics, in this country, will soon give
them a majority of voters: and who, think you,
will they vote for ? A Protestant is it ? Any man
distinguished for virtue, and for love of republican
principles? Assuredly not.

116 STNOPSIS OF POPEEY,

Will they select such a man as the virtuous and
pious FreliughuyseD, of New Jersey? Will they
choose such a man as the upright and honorable
Archer, of Yii^inia? Will they cast their votes
for such a man as the honest John C. Calhoun, of
South Carolina ; than whom, whatever may be his
politics, there is not a greater or a better man of
the age.

I might name hundreds, equally good and great
men, who are disqualified, by their virtues, from
receiving the votes of Popish vassals. None but
mercenary demagogues, such as the Pope's tool,
Daniel O'Connell, who generously sacrifices five
thousand pounds a year to obtain fifty-six thousand^
the sum which he received last year in order to
ofneUorate the condition of the poor Irish. Give the
power, and they will elect such a political desperado
as this restless O'Connell, a Jesuit by ^education,
an intriguer by nature, and as great a coward as
ever drew breath. This is- the chamfHon, and his
followers — the Irish — are the people, who call
Americans cowards, and their "pilgrim fathers/'
pirates and sanguinary v)retches. These are the
men, with Daniel O'Connell at their head, number-
ing nine millions of the " bravest men in the world,"
who have been for centuries, and are now, on their
knees, begging favors from the British government.
Americans, too, once asked for favors, or rather their
just rights, from that government, but.not having
obtained them, they drew their swords, threw away
their scabbards, and, though the whole population
of the United States did not, at that time, amount
to two and a half millions, they fought for their
rights, and they won them. Yet these Popish
braggarts, but wretched slaves, call you cowwls,

AS IT WAS AND AS IT IS. 117

and your fathers pirates. How long will you suf-
fer this ?

We know, from history, that Popery and liberty
cannot coexist iii the same country. A Popish
government has never advanced human happiness.
It never promotes any object truly great or philan-
thropic. How deplorable would it be, did this
country fall a prey to those who are trying to es-
tablish it amongst us. The truth is, Popish glory,
the trappings of its court, have been always the
silly objects of the Roman church, while the mass
of her people has ever been left in the recesses of
want, obscurity, and ignorance.

Americans, at present, seem sunk in a sort of po-
litical lethargy ; and this is taken advantage of, by
foreign priests and Jesuits ; but I would tell those
disturbers of our peace, not to trust too much to
this apparent sluggishness ; a calm often precedes a
storm : the continued insolence, abuses, and threats
of Papists, may arouse our young lion, and, if I
mistake not — although, appearances are at present
against it — his holiness and his minions, who arc
trying to set up a power in this country unknown
to our constitution, and not enumerated in our bill
of rights, may have occasion to tremble.

To effect this, however, without the shedding of
blood, it is necessary — indispensably necessary —
that no Papist should hold office, or even vote, un-
til he ceases to have any connection, or hold any
alliance with the Pope, who is di foreign potentate^
as well as head of the church. Let them come
amongst us, if they will, but let it be with healing
on their wings, and not to disturb our peace and
tranquillity. Let them prove themselves the friends
of liberty, religion, and mankind, and Americans
will receive them with open arms, admit them to a

118 SYNOPSIS OF POPEBT,

fill! participation in all their own privileges, and ex-
tend to them the hand of friendship ; but never let
this be done, until they forswear expressly and
without mental reservation^ all allegiance, of what-
ever kind, and under whatever name, to the Pope
of Rome, who is a, foreign potentate, and acknowl-
edged as such by the powers of Europe. When a
Papist refuses to do this, trust him not. I repeat it,
trust him not, Americans. He is a spy amongst
you, a traitor to your country, and the sworn ene-
my of your religion and your liberties.

This, however, they do not. They come
amongst you with different motives and far different
characters. Though I know them well, it would
be impossible for me to express to you the designs
which mark their entrance into this country.
They cross the Atlantic, under instructions from
their priests, and bring nothing with them but
their bigotry, intolerance, and ignorance. Their
tastes, their passions, and their native hatred of
Protestants are wafted over to us, and are al-
ready corrupting the morals of our people. In
their native country they feel, or pretend to feel,
oppressed by British laws and British government.
They are taught by their priests to despise their
government, at home ; that its laws are all penal,
and that there is no crime in evading them.

There is not an Irish Catholic, who leaves that
country, but feels it his duty to resist the laws
of Protestant England, and evade, by perjury or
otherwise, their execution. " In no country in the
world," says a modern writer. " are the rights of
property so recklessly violated : amongst no people
on the face of tlie earth are the obligations of an
oath, or the discharge of the moral duties, so
utterly disregarded. Any man, the greatest cut-

AS IT VTAS AMD AS tt IS. 119

prit, can find persons to prove an alibi; the most
atrocious assassin has but to seek protection,
to obtain it. And why is this so ? Because the
religious instruction of the people has been total-
ly neglected ; because their priests have become
politicians ; because their bishops, pitchforked
from the potatoe-basket to the palace, have become
. drunk with the incense offered to their vanity ; and
the patronage granted in return for their unprinci-
pled support, instead of checking the misconduct
of the subordinates, stimulate them to still further
violence, and stop at nothing which can forward
their objects. Because the opinions of the people
are formed on the statements and advice of mendi-
cant agitators, who have but one object in view —
their own aggrandizement. Because a rabid and
revolutionary press, concealing its ultimate designs
under the motive of affording protection to the
weak, seeks to overthrow all law and order,
pandering to the worst passions of an ignorant and
ferocious populace."

Irish priests and Irish bishops complain of pov-
erty and grievances at home. They complain
that men of property leave their homes and spend
their incomes abroad ; but as this writer, to whom
I have alluded expresses it, " What encouragement
do they give to such as return from their resi-
dences abroad ? " Allow me, fellow-citizens, to
give you an instance of the treatment which
Protestants of fortune receive from Irish Roman
priests, when they do return to reside upon their
estates in Ireland. I quote from the same au-
thor : —

** The Marquis of Waterford, a sportsman,
boundless in his charities, frank and cordial in his
manners, not obnoxious on account of his politics,
and admitted on all hands to be one of the best

120 SYNOPSIS or POPKET,

landlords in Ireland, comes to reside, and spend bis
eighty thousand sterling per annum, in the coun-
try. He gets up a splendid establishment in the
county of Tipperary; and how is he treated?
His hounds and horses were twice poisoned.
There are scarcely any Protestants in the county
of Tipperary. His offices were fired, and his ser-
vants, with difficulty, saved their lives. Com-
pelled to abandon Tipperary — that sink of Popish
iniquity, every nook and corner of which I am
acquainted with -r- this generous and fine-hearted
young nobleman retires to his family mansion, in
Waterford ; and how is he received there ? I will
not tell you; let his parish priest tell the story.
"Men of Portlan," says this holy Romish priest^
addressing the tenants and neighbors of the Mar^
quis of Waterford, " you were the leading men
who put down Beresford, in '26 (the marquis's
father) ; I call on you now, having put down one
set of tyrants, to put down another set of tyrants,
the marquis himself."

Many of the Romish priests, which we have in
this country, are from that very county of Tippe-
rary, and thousands of the poor Irish amongst us
have had their education, such as it is, from such
worthy apostolic successors as the parish priest of
the Marquis of Waterford.

Such are the people to whom you are yield-
ing the destinies of this happy republic, by allow-
ing them to vote at your elections, or to hold any
office of honor or trust, while they have any con-
nection with the head of their church, the Pope of
Rome. Let the reader pass on from Popish Tippe-
rary to Protestant Ulster, and he will see that the
crimes of the Irish, and the miseries which many
of them suffer, are to be attributed almost solely to
their religion and their priests.

▲8 IT WAS AND A9 IT IS. 121

Mr. Kohl, a fair and very impartial writer, at
least, upon Ireland, and who is often quoted by
the great agitator, O'Connell, says, — in passing
from that part of the country, where the majority
of the inhabitants profess the Roman Catholic re^
ligion to that in which the great bulk of the popu-
lation are Protestants or Presbyterians, — " On the
other side of these miserable hills, whose inhabi-
tants are years before they can afford to get the
holes mended in their potatoe kettles, (the most im-
portatit article of furniture in an Irish cabin,) the
territory of Leinster and that of Munster begins.
The coach rattled over the boundary line, and all at
once we seemed to have entered a new world. I
am not in the slightest degree exaggerating when
I say, that everything was as suddenly changed as
if by an enchanter's wand. The dirty cabins by
the road side were succeeded by neat, pretty cot-
tages ; well cultivated fields and shady trees met
the eye on every side. At first I could scarcely
believe my own eyes, and thought the change must
be merely local, caused by particular management
of that particular state, but the improvement lasted,
and continued to show me that I was among a to-
tally different people, the Scottish settlers, and the
industrious Presbyterians."

We see, in this country, the same difference of
character and habits, between the Irish Protestants
and the Irish Catholics. The Irish Protestant,
wherever you find him, laboring on his loom in
the north of Ireland, working in a factory in New
England, keeping a shop in New York, or culti-
vating a plantation in Carolina, values his home
and integrity, as pearls of great price. He is gen-
erally temperate, frugal, and industrious. We sel-
dom, or never, hear him accused of disturbing the
peace, or fraudulently voting at elections ; on the
11

122 SYNOPSIS or popehy,

whole, he arrives amongst us a worthy man, and,
in time, becomes a useful citizen ; and to what is
this owing ? It is owing to his education. He
has been taught the Bible in his youth ; from this
he learned to love his God, above all things, and his
neighbor as himself.

But how is it with the Roman Catholic, who
comes amongst you ? Scarce does he land on
your shores, when he becomes more turbulent,
more noisy, and more presumptuous, than when he
left his native bogs. As soon as he confesses to
his priest, he hurrahs for democracy, by which
he means anarchy, confusion, and the downfall of
heretics. He must vote ; if he cannot do so fairly,
his priest tells him how to evade the obligations of
an oath. He will swear to support a constitution,
which he never read, and never was read to him ;
he goes again to the confessional, and leaves that
sacred tribunal with an oath upon his lips, that
^^ Americans shall not rule him." He soon hears
the words, " Pilgrim Fathers ; " he goes to his priest,
and asks what these words mean ; he is told that
they were vile wretches, pirates, who came to this
country many years ago, and whose sons were all
cowards, and thus we see that, as far as it is in their
power, they are trying to reduce this country, and
its native inhabitants, to a level with that in which
their vile religion — Popery — has placed them-
selves. If we could cast our eyes over the history
of the world, we should be struck with horror at
the fatal consequences of Popery.

Wherever its followers have had an ascendency,
or wherever they have it now, they appear to be
conspirators against the happiness of the human
race. What were the means by which Popish
kings, emperors, and princes, conducted their gov-
ernments —* irtVA the advice and consent of the

▲S IT WAS AND AS IT IS. 123

Pope of Rome, the vicegerent of heaven ? Craft,
extortion, fire, and sword. What are the means by
which those gov^emments, which at this day are
nnder the Pope and his priests, are conducted ?

The Pope apes the very thunders of heaven,
and such are the '' imitative powers " of his priests
and bishops, that they are equally as destructive as
the original. I have alluded to the contrast be-
tween the Catholic and Protestant people of Ire-
land. The one prosperous and happy ; the other
poor, miserable, and degraded. Heaven's vice-
gerent, as the bishops call the Pope, and the Pa-
pists call the bishops, seldom bestow a thought
upon their subjects, except to gull and inveigle
them for the aggrandizement of their church ; and
we^now see Ireland, one of the fairest countries
upon earth, a country over which God has scattered
plenty, and to which nature is peculiarly bounti-
ful, reduced to want by insolent, haughty bishops,
and vile, profligate priests.

That beautiful land which nature taught to smile
with abundance, they have watered with tears, and
with blood, all the result of Popery ; and this has
been its effect every where. It operates like the
€a8t wind, causing blasting, barrenness, and desola-
tion, wherever it goes, and nothing but the hercu-
lean arm of this young and vigorous republic can
check its progress among ourselves.

But I may be told that nothing is to be dreaded
in this country from Papists ; that they have neither
numbers, nor means, to accomplish their designs
upon our institutions. Let us see whether this is
80. I have stated, in a former page, the number of
bishops, priests, seminaries, and Papists, in this
jcountry. I have also shown you, to a demonstra-
tion, that if the number of emigrant Papists should
wntinue to increase for the next thirty years, as

184

STNOPSIS or POPEBT,

they have for the last eight, they will be a majority
of the population of the United States, and the
Pope our supreme temporal ruler.

Permit me, now, to give you some idea of what
their means are, at least such portion of them as
they derive from Europe, and you can judge for
yourselves what they are in the United States. I
will give you the amount sent from Europe, during
the years 1841, 1842, and 1843. 1 quote from
their own books and receipts.

To Mr. Lefevre, coadjutor and ad-
ministrator, at Detroit, . .

Mr. Purcell, Bishop of Cincin-
nati,

Mr. Fenwiek, Bishop of Boston,

Mr. Kenrick, coadjutor and
administrator, Philadelphia,

Mr. Hughes, eoadiotor and
administrator, of New York,

Mr. Miles, Bishop of Nashville,

Mr. Flaget, Bisnop of Bards-
town,

Mr. Hailandi^re, Bishop of Vin-

cennes,

For the Congregation of the £u-
dists, in the Diooese of Vm-
cennes,

Mr. Rosati, Bishop of St. Louis,

Mr. Chanels, Bishop of Natchex,

Mr. Blanc, Bishop of New Or-
leans,

Mr. Portier, Bishop of Mobile,

Mr.England, Bishop of Charles-
ton,

Mr. Whelan, Bishop of Rich-
mond,

The Missions of the Priests of
Mercy in the United States,

The Missions of the Laxarists
in the United States, . . .

The Missions of the Jesuits in
the state of Missouri, . . .

The Missions of the Jesuits in
the state of Kentucky, . .

1841.

$1,97160

7,77852
3,7U09B

3,66048

8,39606
4,57560

8,67606

8,29188

3,72000

10,51988

4,775 40

2,745 35
1,83582

7,44000

4,57560

4,575 00

6,51000

7,513 60

2,79000

1842.

103,801 75

$1,01095(744764

5,554 20
3,06339

2,96856

10,88572
4,45284

12;24587

3,46332

10,21140

3,95808

1,97904
3,95808

4,45284

4,94760

?,72000

6,58000
3;)4800

85,79982

1843.

9,44880
8,86640

1,14576

»,02082
4,00616

10,60336

1,86000

10,88479

2,29179

4,58304
6,25060

2,86440

6,83668

8,55600

5,96200
3,79000

97.74560

AS IT WAS AHD Ai IT 18. Ii5

With sach an amount of funds annually, from
abroad, in the hands of a body of men, who un-
derstand how to manage and appropriate them,
perhaps better than any other association in the
world, with the majority of the population of these
United States, and having but one single object in
view, namely, the supremacy of their Pope and
their church; what have Americans not to fear?
They will avail themselves of a corrupt state of
representation ; they will procure a majority in
your national legislature, and then, I say, woe be
to your liberties.

Your school-houses, which now ring, at stated
hours, with the praises and glories of God on high,
wherein children are given to drink of the waters
of life, will be converted into monk-houses, and
lying-in-hospitals; prayers to God will no longer
be heard in them ; vagabond saints and wooden
images will be the only objects of adoration ;
ignorance and vice will take the place of intelli-
gence and virtue ; idleness will take the place of
industry ; and the free American who, heretofore,
was taught to walk erect before God and man, will
shrivel and dwindle into a thing fit only to crouch
before a tyrant Pope, and become a hewer of wood
and drawer of water, for lazy and gluttonous priests,
who, for centuries, have been trying to extinguish
the light of reason and science, and who, even at
the present moment, aye, at our very doors, are
trying to abolish some of the finest productions of
genins.

Witness the prohibition, recently, in France, of
the publication of the Wandering Jew. Witness
the prohibition of it^ circulation in Cuba ; and why
is it prohibited ? Because it exposes some of the
trickery of Jesuitism — because it IsLfs bare some

11*

IM SYNOPSIS or POPE&T,

ot the intrigues of that hellish association ^- and
because holy mother church knows full well, that
no honest or honorable man could see her in her
native deformity, without a shudder of disgust —
because she knows that herself and her priests are
but whited sepulchres, filled not with dead men's
bones, but with the living fires of despotism, ava-
rice, lust, and treachery — because she knows that
Eugene Sue, who has written the Wandering Jew,
18 a Roman Catholic, well acquainted with the
practices of Jesuits, sanctioned by the church. A
continuation of the Wandering Jew, and its circu-
lation, might show the world, oven if there were no
better authority, that monasteries and nunneries,
under the control of Jesuits, were but vast Sodoms
and prisons, full of crime and pollution.

Eugene Sue could, and I believe would, show
the world, if his health had not failed him, that
Roman Catholic priests and bishops, though for*
bidden, under pain of excommunication, to marry,
were ediowed to keep concubines. I refer the
reader to the memoirs of the Romish bishop, Scipio
de Ricci, for the truth of this assertion. I also re-
fer you to another valuable work, Binnii ConcHHa^
first volume, page 737. You will find the same
in a work called Corpus Juris Canonici, page 47, to
be had in the Philadelphia Library. You will find
the same permission sanctioned by the council of
Toledo, at which Pope Leo presided. The only
restriction put upon the licentiousness of priests, by
the council of Toledo, was to forbid them from
" keeping more than one concubine at a time, at
least in public^

Cardinal Campeggio expressly says, ^' that a priest
who marries commits a more grievous sin thiem if
h* kept many ooncubines." St. Bernard^ who

AS rr WAS AMD AS IT 18. 197

lied about the beginning of the twelfth centurji
tod who must have been a very charitable man, as
all Catholics now pray to him, tells the world that
'' bishops and priests commit acts in secret, which
it would be scandalous to express."

Pope John XII., was convicted by a general
council, o( fornication^ murder, adultery ^ and in-
cest, but these were not sufficient to depose him.
He still believed in holy mother, the church,
and his own infallibility. There is not an indi-
vidual who reads these statements, and is at all ac-
quainted with history, who does not know that
Pope Paul III., who convened the council of
Trent, had made large sums of money from li-
censes given to houses of ill fame in that city.

The holy church to this day, in the city of Mex-
ico, to my own knowledge, receives large sums
from the same sources, and these are supported
principally by monks, friars and priests. No won-
der, then, that the publication of the Wandering
Jew should be prevented in Catholic countries.
The writer, Mr. Sue, is a man of the world, he has
read the book of nature with as much attention as
he has those in his library. He is a well-read his-
torian, and possesses an admirable faculty of com-
municating his ideas. He clothes them with a sim-
}dicity and beauty, almost peculiar to himself The
man that could depict Rodin, the sanctimonious
Jesuit, in his true character, as Mr. Sue has done,
must necessarily be silenced in a Catholic country.
It must not be known that Jesuits may come
among us in the garb of merchants, or in any other
disguise which they may please to assume ; no in-
timation must be given, that the poisoned cup, the
assassin's dagger, the desperate sea-captain, or the
valiant aoldier, could be concealed under a Jesuit's

198 sTsfOPSis or POPEaar,

cowl, or that he may throw off that cowl, at hn
pleasure, and exchange it for a pea-jacket, a dancing
pomp, the Tiolin. the fencing foil, or even the cos-
tume of a barber, or tamer of wild beasts.

It will not answer the purposes of the holt
CHURCH, that a man should live and write, who is
capable of raising the cnrtain which hides its de-
signs, and conceals the instruments, which she has
ever used, and is now usine. for the destruction of
liberty. Such a man is the author of the Wan-
dering Jew.

No man can look at the picture which he has
drawn of Ignatius Morok, without recognising,
in its every feature, those of a Jesuit and a villain.
He travelled about, in the assumed character of a
" tamer of wild beasts,^' but in reality, he was a
Jesuit missionary, and sent by that order, with full
power to accomplish, by any means within his
power, one of the most infamous acts of fraud that
ever was committed by man.

He was accompanied, (as the reader of Eugene
Sue will find,) by a lay Jesuit, named Karl, md I
cannot give my readers a better idea of Jesuitism,
as it ever has been, and is now, than by requesting
of them to observe the course adopted by those two
villains in accomplishing the object of their errand.
LfOok at their treatment of the honest and faithful
Dagobert. Look at the cruelties which they in-
flicted on the two innocent orphans, committed to
his chaise. See the schemes, by which they have
made even the wife of Dagobert subservient to
their designs. See the arts by which Jesuit priests
crept into families, under various disguises, sowing
amongst them discord, hatred, and domestic strife.
They have put the father against the son, and the
son against the father ; husband against wife, and

AS IT WAS AND AS XT IS. 129

wife agaiDst husband ; brother against sister, and
sister against brother. See how they have con-
trived to filch from the poor and almost starving,
the last sou they possessed, to have masses said for
the repose of the souls of those who were actually
living, to the knowledge of the priest, though rep-
resented by him at the confessional, to have been
long since dead !

See how one of those vagabond Jesuits, in the as-
sumed character of a physician, aided by one of the
sisters of that order. Madam de St. Dizier, imposed
upon the heiress. Mademoiselle de Gardoville. He
offered his services to accompany her to visit a friend
of hers, but had a private imderstanding with a lay
Jesuit^ in the disguise of a hack-driver, to take
them to a lunatic asylum, where he deposited the
heiress. I will not quote from the '' Wandering
Jew," it would be depriving my readers of much
pleasure ; but I would recommend the perusal of it,
in order to become acquainted with some of the
prominent features of Jesuitism. The work ap-
pears as a romance, but it contains many sad and
serious facts. It is a compendium of Jesuitism,
and should be looked upon as a warning to the
citizens of this new world. Americans will scarcely
believe that we have any such Jesuits in this coun-
try, as are described in the Wandering Jew. I tell
them they- are mistaken ; we have them in every
state in the Union, but especially in New York,
Maryland, District of Columbia, Pennsylvania, and
Massachusetts. I speak from my own knowledge.

** Bred in the harem, all its ways 1 know."

A word to those who have daughters, and for-
tunes to give them ; and also to those young ladies,
who have fortunes in their own right.

130 SYNOPSIS or POPERT,

Jesuits will leave nothing undone, to form ac-
quaintance with the children of sach as are supposed
to be wealthy. The Catholic bishops of the Uni-
ted States, in their annual and semiannual de-
spatches to Rome, boast that they are peculiarly
fortunate in gaining converts from such families,
and I trust a word of caution from me will' not
prove useless.

The mode which Jesuits have adopted, in ap-
proaching such families, are various : but the most
general, and hitherto the most successful is, to in-
duce their children to go to their colleges and
schools. In these, every male and female teacher is
to bend the minds of their scholars towards Popery,
and to report progress twice a week to their supe-
riors. But when parents do not send their chilcjf^n
to Jesuit ^hools, the next expedient is. to get
Roman Catholic servants into the family, who are
instructed in the confessional by the priests how
to proceed, especially with their young daughters,
in prepossessing their minds in favor of the Romish
church, and the great beatitudes of a single life.

I have known cases myself, where it was not
deemed pmdent to go so far as to say one word
in favor of the Catholic church, or of a single
life. The young ladies may be engaged, and
their young hearts pledged. A different course'
must now be pursued, and the Popish domestic has
her instructions accordingly. She must find out to
whom the lady is, or is likely to be, engaged ; and it
must be broken off, not abruptly — that is not the
way Jesuits do things — it is to be done gradually.
Their young minds must be poisoned, but the poi-
son must be given in small quantities, until finally
it produces the desired effect ; and then the happi-
ness and the glories of a nun^s life are to be the

AS R WaB and as it IS. 131

theme of conversation, more or less, according to
the instructions received in the confessional.

It is not lung since I met with a Protestant
friend of mine, and in the course of^conversation,
some allusion was made to the subject of nunneries.
He observed that their schools were excellent ; that
bis daughter had just finished her education there,
and had returned home in perfect ecstacy with her
school, with the lady abbess who presided over it,
and with all the nuns by whom she had been edu-
cated. ^'It is said," observed this gentleman to
me, '^ that nuns try to tamper with the religious
opinions of their pupils, and endeavor to make ' nuns
of them,' but there is no truth in this ; they never
interfered with my daughter's religious opinions,
nor did they insinuate to her the most remote idea
of taking the veily or becoming a nun.^^

I made no reply — courtesy forbade it. I might
easily have answered my friend, but I feared the
answer, which truth compelled me to give, would
hurt his feelings. I might have said to him, Sir,
your daughter had not a dollar in her own right,
neither had you one to give her, and you must
know that Jesuits seldom covet penniless applicants
for the blcuJc or white veil. You should have also
known that, although your daughter may have
seemed very beautiful in your eyes, she was proba-
bly devoid of those external charms which would
attract the libidinous eye of a Jesuit. When ladies
are taken into a convent by Jesuits, they must be
possessed of something more than ordinary attrac-
tions. These reverend Jesuits, having the liberty
of choosing, are rather fastidious. Verbum sat.

Truly, and from my heart, 1 pity the female, who
risks herself in the school of Jesuit nuns. She
hazards all that is dear to her. Though she may

138 SfXOPSIS Oil* POPKKY,

leave it, single-minded and innocent as she entered,
-^as I believe they all do who do not become nuns,
•^- still the peril of going there at all is eminently
hazardous aiyl dangerous. But woe be to those
who become nuns. I have been chaplain to one
of those nunneries ; and I assure my readers, on the
honor of a man, who is entirely disinterested, and
whose circumstances place him in an independent
position, who wants neither favors nor patronage
from any individual, that the very air we breatiM,
or the very ground upon which we walk, is not
made more obedient or more subservient to our use,
than a nun, who takes the black veilj is to the use
of Popish priests and Jesuits.

The internal economy and abominations of a
convent are horrible in the extreme. I dare not
mention them, otherwise my book would, and
ought to be, thrown out of every respectable house
in the city. I will only call my reader's attention
to the fact, that, in all Catholic countries, nunneries
have foundling hospitals attached to them. This
any man can see who goes to France, Spain, Portu*
gal, or Mexico.

It will be seen, eyen in this country, that they
have their private burying places and secret ^ults.
It is not more than five or six years, since a num-
ber of Jesuits, in Baltimore, petitioned the legislar
ture of Maryland for leave to run a subterraneous
passage from one of their chapels to a nunnery, dis-
tant only about five hundred yards. The object of
the petitioners was too plain. It was the most
daring outrage ever oflfered any deliberative body
of men ; but, much to the credit of the legislature
of Maryland, they rejected the petition with undis-
guised marks of indignant scorn.

These statements will be rather unpalatable to

AS IT WAf AHD Al IT IS. 133

Jesuits, but my only regret is, that decency forbids
a full development of the crimes committed, with
perfect impunity, in Popish convents. In New
York, every effort seems to be making, by the pres«
ent legislature of that state, to suppress immorality.
A bill is now before that body, making adultery
a penitentiary offence ; yet Popish priests are build-
ing nunneries there, and if Roman Catholic ladies
think it proper to hold a fair to collect money for the
building of those nunneries, these very New Yorkers
will contribute their money freely; and thus, this
ill-placed liberality, which Americans bestow, not
only there but elsewhere, becomes the cause of
evils which they seem desirous to crush.

How is it with us in Massachusetts ? Look at
our statute book, and if we are to judge from that,
of the utter detestation with which our people look
upon immorality of every kind, we deserve to be
considered paragons of propriety. Should there be
amongst us a house, even of equivocal fame, our
guardians of the night and civil officers are allowed
to demand entrance into it at any hour, and if re-
fused, they may use force. Yet we have convents
amongst us, nunneries and nuns too. Poor help-
less females are confined in them, but not an officer
in the state will presume to enter. If admission is
asked, it may or may not be given by the mother
abbess or one of the reverend bullies of the insti-
tution ; but no force must be used. The poor
imprisoned victims, whether content or not with
her station, must bear it without a groan or a
murmur.

This should not be in any civilized country ; and
I will venture the assertion, that it could not con-
tinue one hour, at least among the moral and chari-
table people oif Boston, were they not utterly un-

12

134 BTvopiii or rOTEKT,

acquainted with the iniqaities of the RoinMt
church.

This fully expbuns the opposition to the circnla*
tion of the Wandkbiiio Jew by the imfaUMe ehtrdu

I have ffiven the reader bat a fiiint Yiew of the
persecutions of Popery, down to the close of the
fifteenth century, and revolting as they are, there
is no record to be found from which we can even
infer, that the church has ever altered her doctrine
or practice, on the subject of exterminating here*
tics, namely, all who are not Roman Catholics. If
there were any such record, it could not have
escaped my notice. Some Pope or some council
would, long since, have given it to the w(Mrld.

I was, as has been stated, bom a Roman Catholic,
and educated a priest in that church. I solemnly
declare to you, fellow-citizens of my adopted coun-
try, that nothing has been more forcibly impressed
upon my mind, by my teachers, when a boy —
by the priest to whom I confessed when young — -
by the professors under whom I read Popish theol-
ogy — or by the bishop who ordained me, and with
whom I lived subsequently as chaplain—- -than the
obligation I was under of extirpating heresy, by
argument, if possible; and, if not, by any other
means, even to the shedding of blood. And there
is not now, in this country, an Irish priest nor an
Irish Roman Catholic, and true son of the church,
who does not believe that, if he could collect all
the heretics in the United States, and form them
into one pile, he would be serving God in applying
a torch to it. And, incredible as it may appear to
you, their church teaches them that, in doing S0|
they would be serving you.

The doctrine is taught now, as it was in past

A8 IT WAS AND A8 IT IS. 135

fges, by their priests, that the body must be de-
stroyedj for the good of the soul. " It is a benefit,"
say the pious Popish priests, ''to heretics to be
killed ; the fekoer will be his sins, and the shorter
will be his hell!" You naturally shudder at this
doctrine, but it is not many years since Leo XII.,
in one of his bulls of jubilee, or indulgence to the
faithful, announces publicly, and without shame,
or sorrow, proclaims to Catholics, his beloved sub-
jects, that in order to obtain the indulgence granted
by that bull of jubilee, there are two conditions,
without which, they can derive no benefit from it,
namely, the exaltation of the holy mother church,
and the extirpation of heresy. This ^^ blessed
bull" was published in 1825, and directed to the
archbishop of Baltimore, and all other Popish bish*
ops in the United States, to be made such use of
as their lordships may think proper !

Will you believe it, Americans, that this doctrine
is taught, this very day, in the college of Maynooth,
Ireland. You will find it in De La Hogue's Tract.
Theolog. ch. viii. p. 404, of the Dublin edition.
No priest or bishop will question the authority of
Dr. De La Hogue. He has been professor in that col-
lege for nearly half a century. I must, however,
add here, for the information of all who are unac-
quainted with the doctrine of the pious frauds prac-
tised by Romish priests, that their respective bishops,
or in his absence, the vicar-general, can give any of
them a dispensation to deny any truth or to tell
any falsehood for the " exaltation of holy mother
church." I have received such dispensations my-
self, but, not having the fear of the Pope before my
eyes, I took the liberty of disregarding them.

Many will ask me. Why have you not made
tiese things known before now? There were
many reasons why I suppressed thepd.

136 BTNOPSIS or POPSETy

I knew my motives, however disinterested, might
then be questioned ; secondly, the public mind was
not prepared for the developments which I have
made. Thirdly, my love of peace and quietness
induced me to withdraw to a part of the country,
distant from the scene of my controversy, hoping
that the miscreant priests and bishops of the Rom-
ish church would permit me to pursue my new
profession of the law, without interruption. Bat
in this, as I ought to have known, I was disap-
pointed. Although I have not, since I left Phila-
delphia, until very recentlyj even replied to the cal-
umnies which vagabond Irish priests who infest
this country, and the still greater vagabond bishops
who govern them, together with the tools which
they keep in their employment, have heaped
upon me ; still they have, in the true spirit of their
vocation, never ceased to pursuo me with their
vengeance.

No sooner had I abjured the Pope, disregarded his
bulls, and thereby become a heretic, than they had me
burnt in effigy ! But much more gratified would
they be, had they my person in the place of the
effigy. I still remained unmoved. Soon after this,
Bishop England, of Charleston, South Carolina, es-
tablished a press, called the ^^ Catholic Miscellany,"
whose columns teemed, for months, — almost for
years, — with the grossest and vilest abuse against
me ; yet while this restless demagogue, who is now
in his grave, was spewing forth his filthy abuse, I
was prospering in my profession, and partially re-
covering my health, which I thought was radically
destroyed by the persecutions I suffered in Phila-
delphia ; and thus, while the Pope in Rome, and the
Romish bishops and priests of this country, were
cursing me. Heaven was blessing my efforts and

AS IT WAS AMD AS IT IS. 137

gaining me the confidence of the yirtuous and good,
whom I had the pleasure of meeting in my inters
course with the world.

Strange indeed are the practices of Papists!
Previous to my heresy in Philadelphia, there was
not in that city a more popular man — not another
more respected ; I may almost say, that there was no
man, of any pursuit or calling, whose friendship
was more courted. Yet the moment I committed
the unparch^nable sin of differing with the Pope of
Rome, every one of his faithful children, not only
there but throughout the world, was bound by his
oath of allegiance to persecute me in every possible
way.

Never forget, Americans, that the same oath of
allegiance, which binds them to persecute me, is
also binding on them to persecute and destroy you.
Some of you will say, this cannot be. A church,
numbering among her priests such men as Massillon,
Fenelon, Chevereux, and Taylor of Boston, can-
not entertain, much less command, a spirit of perse-
cution. . True, as far as we cs^n judge, these were
godly men. They would bq an honor to any reli-
gion. But in the Popish church, they were like
stars that strayed from their homes, and losing
their way, fell, by accident, upon the dark firma-
ment of sin and Popery ; but even there, their na-
tive light could not be obscured ; on the contrary,
the darker the cl(»uds around them, the more beau-
tiful and brilliant did their light appear. Poor
Taylor, — " Peace be to thy memory, — we have
been friends together." Methinks I can, even now,
feel the warm pressure of thy hand, see the chari-
ties of thy soul beaming in thy speaking eye and
gentle countenance, yet thou too had been consid-
ered almost a heretic in the city of New York, and

12 •

138 1THOP8IS or POPEBT)

would have been denounced as such by the rude
and vulgar bishop of that diocese, had not the ami*
able Chevereux interfered.

Often have I regretted that this Mr. Taylor, who
was my classmate, and companion of ~ my youth,
had not, in addition to his private virtues, more
fortitude and decision of character. He was the
Erasmus of his day, in the United States. He was
born and educated a gentleman ,- so was the amia*
ble but timid Elrasmus. He was educated a Ro-
man Catholic ; so was Erasmus. He was a chaste
and elegant classical scholar; so was EIrasmus.
Taylor, knowing full well the corruptions of the
Romish church, went from New York to Rome,
about the year 1822, in order to induce the Pope
to modify such of its doctrines as were objection-
able in this country. But he wanted courage, and
hastily retreated back, lest he should be consigned
to the inquisition. Erasmus, too, wanted courage,
a quality as necessary for a reformer as it is to a
general in storming a city and hence it is ; that those
two amiable men, similar in character and dispo-
sition, though living in ages widely apart, have
lived ostensibly members of a church, whose doc^
trines they loathed from the very bottom of their
souls.

This might have been the temper, the character,
and the cause, why such men as Massillon and
Fenelon have lived and died Roman Catholics.
They felt, probably, as Erasmus did, when he said,
^' It is dangerous to speak, and dangerous to be si-
lent." " I fear," said he, in another place, " that
if a tumult arose, I should be like Peter in his
fall." It is not at all strange, that such men as
we have spoken of, should have contented them-
selves with having inculcated virtue, and de-

AS IT WAS AND A8 IT IS. ^ 139

nouuced vice. There were such men in all ages,
and j as a modem writer expresses it, ** in all great re-
ligious movements there are undecided characters."
But let it be borne in mind, that even great and
good as they seemed to be, and eloquent and
pious as they appeared, still they are only excep-
tions in the great body of the advocates of Popery.

No wonder Americans look back to those lights
in the dark and bloody wilderness of Popery. It
is refreshing to see them. They are green spots in
the deserts made barren and desolate, by Popish
iniquities ; and long may their memories shine in
unclouded lustre.

It is pleasant to the historian, who is wearied
and disgusted with contemplating the past and
present horrors of Popery, to turn for a moment
from the frightful spectacle, and rest in devout con-
templation on the lives of those comparatively ex-
cellent men. How mistaken are those would-be
philanthropists, who, at the present time, teach
Americans to infer, that, because those were good
and holy men, possessing a pious and forgiving
spirit, it follows that the Papist church, her bish-
ops and priests, entertain a similar spirit. This is
equivalent to telling them that all history, past and
present, is fdse, a mere romance, the dream of
madmen. It is equivalent to telling them that the
very history and records of the lives of Fenelon,
and Massillon, d^c, were entitled to no credit.
Who can read, and not see that Rome has spilt
oceans of blood to enforce her cruel creed ! Who
can read, and not i^ that she has squandered
treasures enough to relieve the poor of civilized
Europe, in establishing and keeping up a despotism
inimical to man and hateful to God!

The Pbpists, even in this country, do not deny

t40 SmOPSIS OF POPERT,

that they intend to eradicate heresy, and to use
every means which their church considers legitimate
to effect that purpose. This the priests preach
from their pulpits ; this they tell you to your beards.
They admit their determination to bring these
United States, if possible, under the spiritual con-
trol of the court of Rome. They use the word
wpiritual, in utter contempt of your understanding,
to deceive you, and while using it, they laugh at
your credulity. Popish spiritual control, spiritual
allegiance ! it is almost incredible that any body
of men should have the impudence to come for*
ward, in the nineteenth century, and talk of spir^
itual allegiance to his royal holiness the King of
Rome.

They admit their determination to possess this
country, and have the modesty to ask you to give
them lands and churches, and means to accom-
plish their object, and effectuate your destruction.
Their next step will be to quarter upon you an ar-
my of friars, Jesuits, or monks, who will carry at
the point of the bayonet what is left undone by
duplicity, treachery, and intrigue. This has been
the fate of every country where Popery has found
a resting ip^ace, and America is the only nation
which, for the last three centuries, has given
them such a footing. They tried what they could
do in China. They succeeded in establishing sev-
eral bishoprics, Jesuit convents, nunneries, monk-
houses and churches, among the peaceable and quiet
Chinese ; but happening to differ among themselves
on the subject of their respective temporal rights,
they, as in duty bound, referred their differences to
the Pope. This movement came to the ears of the
emperor of China, whom they had so long and
so successfully deceived by the cant words, spirit-

AS IT WAS AKO AS IT IS. 141

I allegiance to the Pope. The parties were
summoned before his commissioner to ascertain
what was meant by spiritual allegiance. They
Cried to explain it, but all their ingenuity, all their
subtity, could not satisfy the commissioner that
spiritual allegiance meant any thing else than what
it fairly expressed, and as soon as he found that it
meant, in the eyes of the Pope and the Romish
church, things real and tangible, such as real estate,
the conveying it from the rightful owner under
the laws of the land, to another under the laws
of the Pope, who lived in Rome, he satisfied him-
self, that the spiritual supremacy of the Pope
meant, among other things, the power to govern
the kingdoms of the earth ; to give away, and take
them away, to whom and from whom, his royal
holiness pleased. The emperor instantly issued an
order, directing that every Roman Catholic bishop,
priest, friar, Jesuit, monk, and nun, within his em-
pire, should quit, within a given time, on pain of
losing their heads. Many of them disobeyed the
order and were executed, and their churches lev-
elled to the ground.

The Chinese had no objection to Papists wor-
shipping God, according to the dictates of their own
conscience ; but as soon as it was discovered that
they owed spiritual allegiance to a foreign power,
they deemed it prudent to remove them from the
country. But the Chinese are barbarians, and it
seems reserved for this new world of ours, to in-
terpret properly the meaning of spiritual allegiance,
and in all differences;; between our citizens and the
agents of the Pope, as to the temporalities of the
Romish church, to lay the subject before his royal
holiness^ and be governed by his decision.

Witness the difference between Bishop Hughes

\

142 . SYNOPSIS or popeby,

of New York, and the trustees of a Roman Catholic
church in Buffalo, only a few weeks ago. Witness
that in New Orleans, between the bishop and the
trustees of the Roman Catholic church. All these
were referred to the Pope, wl>o decided the matter,
without any respect or regard to the laws of this gov*
ernmeut. Call you this spiritual allegiance ? Call
you this an exercise of spu ritual power, on the part
of his royal holiness the Pope ? Yes, you do ; and
it would not much surprise me, if the Papists of this
very city of Boston should recommend to its legis-
lature^ to lay the difficulties between themselves
and the state of South Carolina, before the Pope
of Rome for adjudication.

Should the day ever arrive, when the Papists
have a majority in your legislature, and a differ-
ence should occur between these states, the Pope
will be called in to decide it. I am at a loss to
know how, even in these days of transcendental*
ism, any other meaning can be given to spiritual
allegiance^ than that which the Romsm Catholic
gives it in practice. They consider the Pope, as
the spiritual head of the church, has, a fortioriy
a divine right to be the head and sovereign of the
world. This is the sense in which Catholics under-
stand and act upon it, and swear to support the
Pope, as the supreme arbiter of the destinies of the
world. The Chinese understood this. The em-
peror of Russia understands it at the present day ;
and though a Catholic himself, no priest or bishop,
within his vast dominions, dare avow any allegiance,
spiritual or temporal, to the king or Pope of Rome.
The holy synod of St. Petersburg, Russia, have
notified the Catholic missionaries, who have in-
cited rebellion, and interfered with the civil author-
ities in Georgia, to renounce their intercourse with

AS IT WAS AND AS IT I». 143

the see of Rome, or quit the countryr. But Ameri-
cans, in the alembic of their fertile brains, have
manufactured a definition for spiritual allegiance^
peculiarly their own, for which the Papists are so
much H^bliged to them, that whenever an opportu-
nity of knocking out the aforesaid brains occurs,
they will do so. Witness in the Philadelphia riots,
&c., &c., strong proofs of the spirituality of that
allegiance which Catholics owe to the Pope.

Permit me to give you another evidence of the
nature of that allegiance to the Pope of Rome, to
which I have heretofore alluded. It is to be found
in the massacre of the Huguenots, by Roman
Catholics. There is no event in the history of
France, with which the world is more familiar,
than this. Several historians have related it with
great minuteness and much elegance. To these I
can add nothing of my own, and the reader is
more indebted to them, for the following statement,
Chan to myself.

Massacre of thk Huguenots.

This bloody msussacre took place immediately
after the conclusion of the treaty of St. Germain,
at which the hostilities which had so long existed
between the Catholics and Protestants in Prance,
were suspended, or, as the Protestants believed,
were entirely terminated. The sufferings of the
Protestants, up to the conclusion of that treaty,
were truly great. Their property was wasted;
their beautiful chateaus were burned atid levelled
to the ground ; their flourishing vineyards were
destroyed, and they themselves were left, reduced
in property and numbers ; but great as were their
calamities, the spirit which lived within them was
not quenched. Their hearts, though oppressed.

144 »YirOF8IS OF FOFCRT,

were not broken. The love of God bore them up
against all their trials and privations^ Among those
who suffered most in the Protestant cause, was the
brave and [)ious Admiral Coligny, who, after the
treaty of St. Gerniahi, aud the deatniction of hi»
beautiful estates by order of the Popish and bloody
Catharine, retired to Rochelk). £^;en liere there
was no safety for him. The licentious queeu, and
her paramours, consisting of priests, determined on
his destruction. It is said of this woRnui, that she
occupied twelve years of her life in instructing her
son Ciiarles to swear, to blasplieme, to break his
word, and to disguise his tlK)ughts as well as face^
We are told by contemporary historians, that this
blessed daughter of the holy church suf>plied him
with small animals, when a child, and a sharp
sword to cut off their heads, and shed their blood
by stabbing them ; all this to familiarize hrm with
the shedding of blood, and that at some future day
he might indulge in the same amiisement upon a
larger scale, in cutting off the heads and stabbing
heretics and Protestants. The persecutions of the
Huguenots are known almost to all readers ; few
there are, who are not lamiliar with them. The
illustrious characters, who headed the Protestant
cause in those days, are known to all Protestant
Americans, but none of litem, perhaps, more inti*
mately than the great Coligny, who was one of
the first martyrs to that wretched Popish thing, in
the shape of a woman, Catharine do Medicis,
regent of France. I trust,* therefore, the reader
will pardon me lor giving a few incidents in the
life of this noMenian and martyr, during one of the
regencies of this Popish queen Catharine. After
the marriage (.f Henry of Navarre, Coligny, as we
are told, suddenly retired from the banquet given

AS IT WA6 AND AS IT IS. 145

upon the occasion at the Louvre. It was remarked
that he seemed sad and dejected. He retired to
his hotel, which he would have gladly left and re-
turned home, but dreading that he might alarm his
wife, he preferred writing to her, explaining mat-
ters as far as he could, under existing circumstances.
The letter is so interesting, so affectionate, and
altogether so worthy of the good man, that I can-
not refrain from laying it before my readers. U
was as follows : —

^' My very dear and much beloved wife :

" This day, was performed the cere-
mony of matriage between the king's sister and
the king of Navarre, The ensuing three or four
days will be ^petit in amusements, banquets,
masks, and sham-fights. The k*ing has assured
me that, immediately afterwards, he will give
me some days to hear the complaints, made in
divers parts of the kingdom, touching the edict of
pacification, which is violated there. It is with
good reason that I attend to this matter as much as
possible ; for, though I have a strong wish to see
you, still you would be angry with me (as I think)
if I were remiss in such an affair, and harm came
of it from my neglect to do my duty. At any
rate, this delay will not retard my departure
from this place so long but that I shall have leave
to quit it next week. If I had regard to myself
alone, I had much rather, be with you than stay
longer here, for reasons which I will tell you.
But we ought to consider the public welfare as far
more important than our private benefit. I have
some other things to tell you, as soon as I shall
have the means to see yoii — which I desire, day
and night. As for the news that I have to tell you,

13 /

r

146 8TN0PSIS OF POPERY,

they are these : Tliis day, at four in the after-
noon, the bells were rung, when the mass of the
bride was chanted. The king of Navarre walked
about the while in an oyieii place near the church,
with some gentlemen of our religion who had ac-
companied him. There are other little particulars
which I omit, intending to tell you them when i
see you. Whereupon I pray God, my most dear
and beloved wife, to have you in his holy keeping.
From Paris, this 18th of August, 1572.

" Three days back I was tormented with colic
and pain in the loins. But this complaint lasted
ohly eight or ten hours, thanks be to God, through
whose goodness I am now delivered from those
pains. Be assured on my part, that amidst these
festivities and pastimes, I will not give offence to
any one. Adieu,* once more,

" Your loving husband,

^' CuASTILI«OM."

After having despatched the above letter, Coligny
deemed it his duty to see the king before he left
P^is. His sole object in so doing was to obtain,
if possible, some concessions, or at least s6me
guarantee for the future protection of the persecuted
Protestants, of whom he was a member.

The king received him welt, promised him atl
he asked ; but the king consulted the Pope's nun-
cio, who was then in the city, and that holy man
advised him to keep no faith with that Protestant
Cdigny, but on the contrary, to make all the use
he could of him, in order the more effectually to
accomplish the destruction of the heretical band to
which he belonged. After receiving this Christian
ailvice, the king became apparently more friendly
to Coligny, and went so far as to promise hin** a

A8 rr WAS AND AS IT IS. 147

safe escort on his way home. " If you approve
of it," said the king to Coligny, " I will send for the
guard of my Arquebusiers for the greater safety of
all, for fear they might unawares do yoiya mis-
ehief ; and they shall come under officers who are
known to you.'' The generous and unsuspecting
Christian, Coligny, accepted the offer of the guards,
and twelve hundred of them were ordered into the
city. There were many of the Protestants in the
ci4;y, who, on seeing this array of troops, felt alarmed
for the safety of their friend Coligny ; they whis-
pered their fears to the brave warrior, who until
then did not even dream of treachery. But now,
fearing that something might be wrong, he re-
solved to see the queen mother. She expected
this, and granted him an interview wjth great appa-
rent pleasure. As soon as he commenced to sug-
gest any fears or apprehensions of treachery, this
holy daughter of the church, suddenly interrupting
him, exclaiming, **Good God, sir admiral," said she,
"let us enjoy ourselves while these festivities con-
tinue. I promise you on the faith of a queen, that
in four days I will make you contented, and those
of your religion." Coligny had now the word of a
king, and the honor of a queen, as a guarantee for
his own safety, and that of the Protestants in Prance.
Who could any longer doubt that they were safe ?
Who could beh'eve that a king would violate a
solemn promise freely given? Who could question
the honor of a lady and the promise of a queen ?
Who would venture to assert that a mother would
tlot iS^e her best effort to redeem the honor and
plighted faith of a son, and that son a king ? No one
but a Roman Catholic could doubt it. Charles was
a Roman Catholic king. His church taught him,
that no faith was to be kept with heretics. Coligny

148 STM0P8IS or poPEiur,

was a heretic. Catharine, the queen mother, was a
Roman Catholic ; her church taught her to keep
DO I'uith with heretics, but to '* destroy them, root
and branch, under pain of eternal damnation."
Heritici destruendi is the doctrine of the Roman
Catholic church ; and accordingly, on the evening
of that very day on which Coligny had an ai/di-
ence with the queen, these distinguished and pious
children of the holy Roman Catholic church ap-
pointed an interview with the Pope's nuncio, and
after that holy man sung the Vent Creator SpiriiuSf
(a hymn which they invariably sing, when laying
any plan for the destruction of heretics,) these three
worthy children of the infallible church resolved to
send for the '^ king's assassin," a man named Mau-
reval, and ordered him to assassinate Coligny. Il
must be observed here, that the Pope's legate al-
lowed Charles and his mother to keep an assassin,
to cut down such thistles or tares as the devil may
plant in the vineyard of the holy see. Soon after
this, Coligny had occasion to go out on dome busi-
ness. The Popish assassin pursued him at a
distance, secreted himself in a house where he
knew he conld deliberately shoot at him ; he did
so, but the wound, though 'severe in the extreme,
did not prove mortal. Among the first who visited
him were the king and his mother ; and such was
the apparent grief of Catharine, that she shed tears
for the sufferings of the warrior. The good son of
this ' good mother mingled his tears with hers,
promising that the assassiti, whoever he was, should
be brought to condign punishment ; but heed I now
tell you, Americans, that the tears of this Popish
queen, for the sufferings of this Protestant, were
like those of the hyena, that moans in the noast
piteous strains, while sucking the life-blood of its

AS rr WAS AND AS IT IS. 149

victim ? Need I tell you they were like those of the
crocodile, which sheds them in abundance while
devouring its prey ? Need I inform you that by
her promises of future protection, she resembled the
filthy buzzard, which spreads its wings ov^r the
body or carcass of its prey, while plunging its beak
into its very entrails ? And such 1 tell you now,
as I have told you before, Americans, and shall tell
you while I live, is the sympathy, and such the
protection which every good mother and son of the
holy Roman Catholic church would extend to
you, your Protestant religion and its followers, in
these United States.

We will now pass over the various meetings held
by the king, his mother, queen Catharine, and the
Pope's nuncio, for the purpose of devising ways
and means, not for the death of Coligiiy, but for
the destruction of all the Protestants in France.
'To detail these would be a tedious undertaking ;
and not more tedious than revolting to the best
feelings of humanity. ^Depravity was reduced to a
science in the court of Catharine, and her son
Charles. She employed even her ladies of honor
for the seduction of her yoflng nobility. They
were ladies — I should say human things — select-
ed for their beauty, and trained up by this royal
mother in the Romish church, in habits of ut-
ter abandonment to seduction and lasciviousness.
Yoilng men of honor, virtue, and patriotism,
were introduced to them, by Catharine, especially
those who were at all susf)ected of being favorable
tb Protestantism. These maids were required to
ascertain from these young noblemen who, and
how many of their young friends were friendly to
th# cause of Protestantism, with a view of marking
them for extermination, as soon as herself and the

'13*

150 snropsis of roFKur,

Pope's legate should deem it expedient to do 8O0
The hour at last arrived, when the holy trio deemed
it expedient to order a general massacre of the Prot-
estants. The order was issued. ~ The bells of
the Apman Catholic churches were rung, and the
royal order *' Kill \ kill ! kill ! " all, was issued by
the king, and repeated by his Roman Catholic
mother. I could not if I would, nor would. I if I
could, describe the scene that followed. Suffice it
to say, that particular orders were given not to
spare Admiral Coligny. Blameless as was his life,
and devoted as he was to his king and government,
yet he was a Protestaut, and must die, and that by
the hand of a Popish assassin. The holy church
reserved to herself the glory of murdering this
heretic. As soon as the order to murder was given,-
a rush was made towards the residence of OoTigny.
They entered his chamber, and to use the language
of another, ^' they found him sitting in an arm-
chair, his arms folded, his eyes half upturned
with angelic serenity towarj^ heaven, looking the
image of a righteous man falling asleep in the
Lord. One of the murderers, a pious Catholic, called
Besma, fixing his fiendish eye upon the admiral,
asked him, ^Art thou the admiral?' pointing his
sword at him at the same time. ' I am the admi-
ral,' replied Coligny. 'Young n^n, thou shouldst
have regard for my age and infirmities ; ' " but the
murderer plunged his sword into the Christian
hero's breast, pulled it out, and thrust it in again.
Thus died this noble Protestant ! Thus died the
veteran Coligny, by the hands of a Popish boy I
And for what? He believed in the Bible — he was
a Protestant. And thus, fellow Protestants of the
United States, will your posterity be sacrificedy^or
similar crimes, unless God in his mercy drive £rom

AS IT WAS AND AS IT IS. Ifil

your laiid, and mine by adoption, every vestige of
the Popish religion. No sooner was Ck)ligny put
to death, than bis head was cut off and presented to
Ciueen Catharine, who sent for her perfumer, and
ordered it to be embali^ed and forwarded Jlo the '
Pope, as a mark of her devotion to the holy see.
But even this did not satisfy the queen. Her
Popish bloodhounds, on hearing of Coligny's mur-
der, rushed through the streets to his apartments,
searching every where for his mangled body, and
having found it, a general cry was raised, " The
admiral ! the admiral ! '' - They tied his legs and
his arms together, and dragged them through the
Streets shouting, "Here he comes, the admiral!"
One cut off his ears, another his legs, another his
nose, hands, &c. Tbey abandoned the body, to
let the boys amuse themselves by inspecting it,
and then tumbled it into the river. But .the zeal-
ous Catharine was not satisfied yet. This good
daughter of the Pope ordered the river to be
dragged, until what remained of Coligny was
found, and then ordered it to be hung in chains o%l
a gibbet at a place called Mountfagon. A contem-
porary writer, a Roman Catholic, spelking of this,
says: " the road to Mountfagon was a scene of in?
cessant bustle, created by the gentlemen of Catha-
rine's court, who, in splendid dresses and perfumed
with essences, went to insult the relics of Coligny.
Catharine also went with her numerous retinue.
Charles accompanied his mother. On arriving be-
fore the gallows, the courtiers turned away their
heads, and held their noses on account of the
stench arising from the half, putrefied remains.
' Poh ! ' said Charleg and his mother, to their cour-
tiers, ' the dead body of a heretic always smells^
well.' " On returning home she consulted with

ISa smopftis or rePEKr,

her confessor, who advised her, now that the deril
had the heretic's body, it would be well to have a
aoiemn high mass for the occasion, to be said at the
church of St. Germain, at which Charles and his
mother attended, and a Te Deum was sung in
honor of the glorious victory gained by the chufth,
by the destruction of so many heretics.

As soon as the Pope heard this news, his holi-
ness despatched a special messenger to France, to
congratulate the king on having " caught so many
heretics in one net." So joyous and elated did his
royal holiness appear, that he offered a high reward
for the best engraving of the massacre ; having, on
one side, as a motto, "the triumph of the
CHURCH ; " and on the other, *^ the pontiff approves

OP THE BTURDER OF COLIGNT." This eUgravillg IS

now to be seen in the Vatican of Rome.

The number of those who were massacred on
St. Bartholomew's day is variously stated. Mazary
makes it thirty thousand ; others over sixty : but
the Pope's nuncio, who was on the spot during the
massacre, in a letter to the Pope, tells him, ''the
number was so great it was impassible to esH^
mateit.^^ I

becollect, American Protestants, that this massa-
cre, and others to which I have alluded, was not
the work of a few fanatics. It was the work of a
nation, by their representative, the king, empowered
to do so by the head of the Roman Catholic church.
In vain is it for Papists to tell us that all this blood-
shedding and destruction of human life was the
work of a few, with which the church was nei7
ther chargeable nor accountable. American^ may be-
lieve them if they will. Let th^m believe. " Therfe
are none so blind as those who will not see." If
neither the testimony of hisk)ry, nor a statement

AS IT WAS AND AS IT IS; 168

of facts, bearing all the necessary evidence of truth,
will convince them, vain indeed are my eiforts to
do so. But there is no impropriety in my earnestly
and solemnly appealing to Americans, and suggest-
ing one or two questions, which they should put
to any Roman Catholic who may deny that the
church ever sanctioned those evil deeds of which I
have spoken. Have you any record of the fact, that
the church ever discountenanced the destruction of
heretics ? Did the Popish authorities ever deliver
up those* whom they knew to have murdered her-
etics to the civil tribunals ? Were there ever any
heretics murdered, as such, except by the advice,
counsel, and connivance of the Popish church and
her priests ? If there were, in what country, in
what age, and in what reign ? Until these ques-
tions can be truly answered, you are not to be satis-
fied. But why will Americans, for a moment, en-
tertain a doubt upon the subject ? Popish histori-
ans never deny it. The actions of Papists all over
the world proclaim it. The church of Rome has
ever thirsted for the blood of heretics. She now
yearns for an opportunity of shedding it again ; all
for the purpose of " purifying the earth of heresy."
Do yon not see that her conduct, in all ages and
all places where she had opportunities, confirms
this ? Do you not even see, that in this country,
thp members of that church can scarcely keep their
hands ofi" you ; and so bloody ape the sentiments
which they inherit, that, for want of other subjects,
they will sometimes shed that of each other ?
What would they not have done, a few weeks ago, .
in Philadelphia, had they the power? What in
New York ? What in Boston, or any where else in
the United States ? - Do you not see, in all your in-
tercourse with them, the ill-concealed hatred which

104 SYNOPSIS or POPERY,

they bear you ? If you have any charitable institu*
iions for the support of Protestants, will they aid
you ? If you hold a fair for the pur|X)se of build-
ing a church, or for any other Protestant purpose,
will they attend it and purchase from you ? They
will not. If they do, they commit a sin against the
church, and the power of absolving from that sin
is reserved for the bishop of the diocese. It is a
reserved case, as the church terms it. It is only by
virtue of a dispensation, granted by the Pope to
this country, that a Roman Catholic is even allowed
to attend the funeral of a Protestant ; and should he
go into one of your churches, even though there
was no. service at the time, if he is a true son of
the church, he will hasten to his priest and obtain
absolution for that special crime. Yet, if they want
churches built, you will furnish them with money.
If they want land to build them upon, you will give
it to them. Is this wise in you ? You are denounced
ill those churches as heretics ; your religion ridi-
culed, and yourselves laughed at. Your motives
are undoubtedly good. You believe, because you do
not know to the contrary, that, by your contribu-
tions, you are advancing the cause of morality.
You do not reflect — and perhaps the idea never
occurred to you — that there is a wide • difference
between the religion of a Protestant and that of a
Papist. That of the Protestant teaches him to be a
moral and -virtuous man; whereas, that of the Pa-
pist has not the remotest connection with virtue.
A Catholic need not dream of virtue, and yet be a
member of that church.

The most atrocious villain, as an eminent writer
(expresses it, may be rigidly devout, and without any
shock to public sentiment in Catholic countries, or
even among Roman Catholics in the United States.

AS IT WAS AND Afl IT IS. 155

Religion I as the same writer says, and as we al)
know, at least as many of us as have been in those
countries, and who are acquainted with Catholics in
this, is a passion, an excuse, a refuge, but never a
* check. It is called by Papists themselves refugium
teccatorum. Hence it is, that priests may be drunk-
rds, and their flocks never think the worse of them,
have known some of them, whose private rooms
vhere they heard confessions, were sinks of de-
baucheries, which a regard for public decency pre^
"ents me from mentioning. I have known females,
vho have been seduced by them, and who after-
vards regularly went to confession, under the
mpression which every Catholic is taught to feel,
bat no matter what a priest does, provided he
peaks the language of the church. DonH mind
ohat he does, but mind what he speaks, is a proverb
imong the poor Irish Papists. None of them dare
ook me in the face and deny this, and yet these
vretches talk of morals. But what think you,
^-^rotestants, of this kind of morality or of the church
^jirhich does not even forbid it, and only requires to
have it "concealed from heretics? ^^ Do you desire
it propagated amongst you ? Do you wish your
children to learn it ? No virtuous daughter or
decent woman should ever venture under the same
roof with those men.

Paganism, in ita worst stages, was a stronger
check to the passions than Popery. I will give you
one instance of the abominations of Popery. Pa-
pists believe in the doctrine of the real presence
of Christ, in the sacrament of the Eucharist. It
is the duty of every priest iti that church to admin-
ister this sacrament to the dying, and for this pur-
pose, they consecrate a number of small wafers,
made of flour and water, each of which, they pre-

156 • STNOPS18 OF POPERY,

tend to believe, contains the body and bloody stml
and divinity of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ,
or in other words, thE| Lord God himself. The
priests carry Vith them, in a small box called pixis,
a number of them tol>e givefi to the sick and dying.
There are but few of them in the United States,
in whose breeches' pockets may not be found, at
any hour of the day. at least a dozen of those gods.
Can there be religion here? Can there be morality
among those men or their followers ? I would go
further, and ask. Is there any thing in Paganism
equally impious or more revolting to God .or man?
They know full well that such a creed cannot be
sustained either by reason or Scripture, and hence
it is, they want all power concentrated in the Pope
of Rome, in order to extirpate their opponents,
Protestant heretics. Papists understand the char-
acter of Americans, and are well aware, that if suf-
ficiently satisfied of the existence among them, of
a sect who believed in a doctrine so absurd, and so
V impiously profane, as that of the real bodily pres*
ence of Christ in the Eucharist^ they could not
countenance them. My own impression is, that if
the people of Boston, where I write, knew that
Catholic priests taught their followers to believe,
that they (the priests) could make god's by the
dozen, carry them in their pockets, take them out
when and where' they pleased, and there kneel to
them, in adoration^ they would have them indicted
nnder the statute against blasphemy. The Rev.
Abner Kneeland was indicted because ffie denied
the procession of the Holy Ghost, and found guilty
of blasphemy. But what was his crime, when
compared with that of Romish bishops and priests I
It was bad enough, to be sure, in the 'eyes of all
Christian men, and few questioned the righteous*

AS IT WAS AND AS IT IS. 167

ness of the verdict of his guiit. If a Pagan priest
should arrive amongst us,* bringing with him his
gods, and worshipping them in our midst, should we
safiction him ? I know not that our constitution
forbids such a thing, but the reverence which we
have for the one true God, our love of morality and
good order, would forbid it. We would accuse and
indict them for blasphemy. But is their blasphemy
more horrid than that of the Romish church ?

The Pagan priest hews his god out of wood ;
the Popish priest makes his out of flour and wa-
ter. The Pagan priests convey their gods in some
vehicle, from place to place, and stop to worship
them, wherever their inclination or devotion
prompts them. The Romish priests carry theirs in
their pockets, or otherwise, as occasion or love of
pomp may suggest.

Where,' Americans, is the difference ? Which ia^
the greater blasphemer ? Which is the bolder and
more reckless violator of- that great commandment,
"/ am the Lord thy God.^^ " Thou shalt have
none other gods before me " ? You will not hesi-
tate to decide. The Pagan may be honest ia his
belief ; he may worship according to the light that
is in him, or the knowledge that has reached him.
He may never have seen the Gospel. The Day
Star from, on high may never have arisen over
him, or illumined his path ! ^^The moTning upon
the mountains " may perhaps never have gladdened
his vision ; he may, to us at lea^t, be excusable,
and as iTar as we can see, without offence before
God. But is the Romish priest, who makes his
god out of flour and water, and worships it, sin-
less ? Is he not an idolater ? What can be more
blasphemous than to believe that a wafer, made of
flour and water, can be changed, by the incanta-

14

168 sTsoPsis or popsiur,

tioDS of a Romish priest, into the God of haaTen
and earth !^

The Popish church teaches that the flour, of
which the wafer is made, loses its substance, and
ail its natural properties, and is changed by the
words of consecration into the Almighty God ; that
is, it is no longer floiir and water ; it is changed, —
not spiritually^ as Protestants beliei^, —- but actu-
ally and really becomes the body and bloody soul
and divinity of Jesus Christ, such as it was when
nailed to the cross, and as such they worship the
wafer. If this is not idolatry, I cannot understand
what idolatry is. If this is not blasphemy, I wish
some New England gentleman 6f the ministry, or
the bar, would explain it, and tell me what they
mean by their statute against blasphemy.

Does blasphemy, in their estimation, mean noth-
^g ? or is it something introduced into 6ur laws,
only for the purpose of exercising the ingenuity of
legal and ecclesiastical casuists ? Surely, if the word
has any meaning whatever, in law or morals, in
church or state ; if it can be enforced at all, and
there is such a crime as blasphemy, it should be en->
forced against the Romish priest or bishop, who
bows and teaches his followers to bow, in adoration,
to a piece of* bread and water, and thus blasphe-
mously insult, as far as poor mortals cdn, the great
and living God. Surely, th6 state authority, which
would institute a criminal prosecution for blas-
phemy against Kneeland, because he did not be-
lieve the Holy Ghost to proceed ^' from th^ Father
and the Son," and does not prosecute for blasphemy
Popish priests, who believe, and teach tlieir follow-
ers to believe, that they can create, or rather man-
ufacture as many gods as they please, out of * flour

AS IT WAS AND AS IT IS. 109

and water, either neglects his duty, or his knowl-
edge of it is very equivocal.

Either this is the case, or the treatment of Knee-
land originated ia some cruel persecution. The lat-
ter I am far from believing.

As a citizen of this state, I would ask respect-
fully, why proceedings, under the statute against
blasphemy, are not immediately commenced against
Popish priests ? Is it because Kneeland was friend-
less and alone, that he was selected as a proper vic-
tim ? and is it because Popish priests are supported
by a large party, equally criminal with themselves,
that they are spared? Not at all, say the sympathizers
with Popery. Kneeland made a noise in his meet-
ings ; they were troublesome in the neighborhood
where they were held. Be it so. I will not deny
this, nor do I wish to be considered as the apologist
of Kneeland, his blasphemies, or his meetings ; but
I would ask the prosecuting officer of the -state,
whether Kneeland's meetings were more noisy than
Popish repealers f Were they even half so turbu-
lent or uproarious ? Let those whose duty it is an-
swer the question, and tell us why priests are not
prosecuted for blasphemy. I contend that if there
is one blasphemy under the sun more revolting than
another, it is that of believing and teaching that a
wafer can be changed from what God made it, in-
to that same Almighty God, by mumbling over it a
few' Latin words. It makes me shudder at the
weakness of man, and the unaccountable influence
of early education, to think that I myself once be-
lieved in this horribly blasphemous doctrine.

The doctrine of Popish priests in adoring a wa-
fer made of bread and water, and their mode of
manufacturing the wafer into God, is not only blas-
phemous, but extremely ludicrous.

160 SYNOPSIS OF POPERT,

Has rhe reader ever seen a Popish priest in the
act of making, or metamorphosing bread and water
into Jlesh and blood 1 if he has not, it would be
well, if not profane, to witness it ; for never before *
has he seen such mountebank tricks. The priest,
this great creator 'of flesh and blood out of flour
and water, appears decked out in as many gew-
gaws as would adorn a Pagan priestess, and about
twice as many as would be necessary f^r a Jewish
rabbi. Amid the ringing of small bells, dazzling
lights, genuflections, crossings, incense, and a va-
riety of other such " tricks before high Heaven,"
this clerical mountebank metamorphoses this wafer
into God, and exhibits it to his followers, whom he
calls upon to go on their knees %uid adore it. This
horrible practice should induce our philanthropists,
who are sending vast sums abroad for the conver-
sion of the Pagan, to pause and ask themselves,
whether there is, in the whole moral wilderness of
P^anism^any thing worse, or half so bad, as that
idolatry which we have at our own doors I

If a being from some unknown world, and to
whom this wodd of ours was as little known as
the one from which he came was to us, should, by
accident or otherwise, arrive among us, and we
were to take him into a Roman Catholic church
durine the celebration of mass, and there tell him,
that the great actor in the service was making flesh
and blood out of bread and water, and cotild actu-
ally accomplish that feat, he would unhesitatingly
award to these Utiited States the credit of having
among them some of Hhe most accomplished jug-
glers in the world.

What are your Eastern fire-eaters, sword-swal-
lowers, and dervises, to a Popish priest ? Why, it
would be easier to swallow a rapier, ten feet longi

AS IT WAS AND AS IT IS. 161

or a ball of fire as large as the mountain Orizaba,
than to metamorphose flour and water into the
''great and holy Oodj who created the heavens
and the earth, and all that is therein.*"

Let me not be accused of levity, or want of rever^
ence to that Almighty Being, to whom I am indebt-
ed for my creation and preservation, and on whom
alone, through the merits of the Saviour, my hopes
of salvati^ii are placed. My only object is, to call
the attention of my fellow-citizens to the absurd
and profane doctrines of Popery ; and that having
seen them, in their true colors, it is to be hoped
they will find little favor from a thinking and reflect-
ing peof>le.

It is extremely unpleasant to my feelings, thus
to expose the profanity of a religion which I once
professed, and inculcated upon the minds o^ others ;
but the best atonement I can make for my uncon-
scious ofience to my God and my fellow-beings is,
to acknowledge my error, and caution others against
falling into the snares which an early education, re-
ceived from priests and Jesuits, had precipitated me.
The reader will therefore pardon me if I lay before
him a few more Popish extravagances.

It is generally known, that Papists believe in the
doctrines of miracles. So do I, and so do all Chris-
tians. But it is not so well known that the mira-
cles, in which Protestants believe, difier widety from
those which the Romish church teaches her fol-
lowers. We believe the miracles recorded in the
Holy Scriptures ; to these, however, the infallible
church pays little or no attention, but hands us down
a catalogue of miracles, for the truth of which she
herself vouches, and calls upon all to receive them
as the " genuine Sirticle." It may be edifying, and
if not, it cannot fail to be amusing to American

14*

162 STNOFSIS OF POPEET,^

Protestants, to see a specimen or two of Popish
miracles. I assure the reader, they are very hit
ones, to my own personal knowledge, and consid-
ered as such by every true Roman Catholic in this
city of Boston as well as elsewhere.

St. Hieronymus, better known by the name Je-
rome, who died early in the fifth century, relates
the following miracle : — ''After St. Hilary was ban-
ished from France to Phrygia, he met vp the wil-
derness a huge Bactrian camel, and having seen, in
a vision, that his camelship was ]K)Ssessed of the
devil, he exorcised him, and the devil- sprang out
from him, running wild through the wilderness,
leaving behind him a strong smell of brimstone."
He tells us another miracle, with much gravity.
'' Paul the Hermit," says this saint, '' happening to
die in the wilderness, his body remained unburied,
; until discovered by St. Anthony. The saint being
alone, and not having the means of digging a grave,
nor strength enough to place in it the body of the
hermit, prayed to the Virgin Mary to aid him in his
difficulties. The result was, two lions, of the
largest species, walked up to him, licked his hands,
and told him that they would dig the grave them-
selves with their feet, and place the body of Paul
in it. They did so ; and having finished their busi-
ness, W£nt on their knees, asked the saint's blessing,
and v^ished in the woods. "
. Palladus, who lived in the fifth century, and
was greatly distinguished in the Romish church,
tells us of a hyena, which, in a certain wood in
•Greece, killed a sheep. The next day, a pious
hermit, who happened to live in the neighbor-
hood, was surprised at seeing > this hyena at the
door of his cave ; and on asking it what was the
matter, the hyena addressed him in the foUowiug

AS IT WAS AND AS IT IS. 163

language : " Holy father, the odor of thy sanctity
reached me ; I killed a sheep last night, and I came
to ask your absolution." The saint granted it, and'
the hyena departed in peace. We find in Butler's
Lives of the Saints, which is for sale in almost all
Roman Catholic bookstores, an account of some
most extraordinary miracles, for the truth of which,
the infallible church pledges her veracity. For
instance ; when heretics cut off the head of St.
Dennis, the saint took it up, put it under his arm,
and marched off some miles with it. Butler relates
another extraordinar/ miracle, and if American
Protestants presume to doubt it, they may expect a
bull from the Pope of Rome.

A certain lady in Wales, named Winnefride, was
addressed by a young prince, named Caradoc. But
she, being a nun, could not listen to his addresses.
The young prince got impatient, and finally, in
a fit of rage and disappointment, he pursued her in
one of her walks, and cut off her head. A saint,
by the name of Beuno, hearing of this outrage,
went in pursuit of Caradoc, and having come up
with him, he caused the earth to open and swallow
him. Upon his returning where the 7iun^s head
fell, be found that a well had opened, emitting a
stream of the purest water, the drinking of which,
to this day, is believed to cast out devils. When
the holy St. Beuno looked at the head of the nun,
he took it up and kissed it, placed it on a stump,
and said mass. No sooner was the mass finished,
than the beheaded nun jumped up, with her head
on, as if nothing had happened.

Come forward, Americans, if you dare, and deny
this mirjeu:le. The holi/ church vouches for its
truth. St. Patrick, the great patron of Paniel
O'Connell, whom his holiness the Pope calls .the
greatest layman livingy performed some very ex-

164 SYNOPSIS OF POPERT,

traordinary miracles, as we are told ; among them
was Che following : A poor boy strayed from home,
and died^ of starvation, or something else, and
the body' was nearly devoured by hogs, when St.
Patrick, chancing to pass that way, discovered it in
this mutilated condition. The holy saint touched
it, and it instantly sprang into life, resuming its
former shape and proportions. On another occa-
sion, as we read in the Lives of the Saints, St.
Patrick fed fourteen hundred people with the flesh
of one co.w, two wild boars, and two stags ; and
what is more strange thau*all, the same old cow
was seen, on the following morning, brisk and mer^
rily grazing on the very same field where she' was
killed, cooked, and eaten by the multitude.

We read of another very great miracle, which
no Roman Catholic can doubt, without running the
risk of being considered a heretic. St. Xavier, who
is considered one of the most distinguished saints in
the Romish church, had a valuable crucifix. On
one of his journeys at sea, it fell overboard, much
to his regret. When he arrived at his place of
destination, he took a walk along shore, meditating
on the power, grandeur, and infallibility of the
mother of saints, and what was the first object that
caught his eye ? Lo, and behold, he saw^ a crab
moving towards him, bearing in its mouth the
saint's crucifix, and continued to advance until he
reverently laid it at his feet. No Roman Catholic
writer, since the days of St. Xavier, questions the
truth of this miracle.

. The Popish biographers of St. Xavier tell us of
another great miracle performed by him, the truth
of which is attested by the infallible church.
The devil tempted Xavier, and the " old hoy "
assiumed the shape of a lovely female ; the saint
ordered her off, but she refused, and attacked him

A8 IT WAS AND AS IT 18. 165

agaiu on the same day ; but the saint, nnwilling to
be annoyed any longer, spit in the devil's face, and
he instantly fled.

I cannot dismiss this subject without relating a
few more of those miracles which Roman Catho-
lics believe. They may be seen in ^ Belarmine's
Treatise on the Holy Eucharist, book iii. ch. 8. St.
Anthony, of Padua, got into an argument with a
heretic, concerning the doctrine of transubstantia-
tioUf or the changing of bread and water, by
Romish priests, into the^ flesh and blood of Jesus
Christ. After arguing the question for a long
time, the heretic proposed to St. Anthony to settle
their controversy in the following manner : '^ I
have a horse," said the heretic, '^ which I will keep
fasting for three days; at the expiration of. that
time, come with, your host (an image) and I will
meet you with my horse. I will pour out some
grain to my horse, and you will hold the host be-
fore him ; if he leave the grain, and adores the
host, I shall believe." They met, and St. An-
thony addressed the horse in the following words.
I translate, literally, from that illustrious writer in
the Roman church, Belarmine.

'^ In virtue, and in the name of thy creator,
whom I truly hold in my hand, I com/fnand and
enjoin thee, O horse, to come, and with humility,
adore him^^ The horse, instanter, left his com,
advanced tofoards the host in the priesfs hand,
and, devoutly kneeling, adored it as his God.

St. Andrew, as we read in Romish history, was
a man of great eminence and sanctity. Papists
pray for his intercession daily. The infallible
church informs us, that he performed some very
great miracles. I beg to give my readers one, as
a sample of the many which he performed.

166 STN^FSIS or POPBRT,

I

The devil, armed with an axe, and accompanied
by several minor devils, with clubs in their hands,
made an attack npon the saint, whereupon he called
upon St. John, the apostle, to rescue him. St.
John lost no time in making his appearance, and
summoning, some holy angels to aid him, with
chains in their hands, he rescued St. Andrew from
these devils, and chained every one of them to the
spot ; whereupon, as we are informed in the Ads
of the Saints, St. Andrew burs^ into laughter, and
the devils fell to screaming and crying mercy.

In the year 1796, a work, entitled OffidcU Me-
moirs, was published in Ireland, under the authority
of Dr. Bray, archbishop of Cushel, and Dr. Troy,
archbishop of Dublin. In this work it is stated
— and to doubt the fact in Ireland, would be
heresy — that in the month of May,' 1796, at
Toricedi, tears were seen to flow from the eyes of
a wooden image of the Virgin Mary. Impious as
such doctrines are, they are now believed by
Roman Catholics.

I was myself personally acquainted with arch-
bishop Troy, and I remember, when young, that
he and the priests by whom I was instructed, took
much more pains in impressing upon my mind the
truth of such miracles, as that of the wooden Vir-
gin Mary, than they did the truths of the Gospel ;
and, in fact, every Catholic is taught to rest his sal'
vaiion, almost entirely, upon the intercession of the
virgin. Ninety-nine in a hundred of Irish Catho-
lics rest all their hopes of salvation on the Virgin
JWary. They adore her, they worship her, and
what is worse, Popish bishops and priests teach
them to do so. They even compel them to adore
the virgin, though the miserable beings have the
hardihood to deny it before Americans. Bat will
they dare do it before me ? When a poor, ignorant

AS IT WAS AMD AS IT IS.

167

Catholic goes to coufessioa, the usual penance im-
posed by the priest, for minor offences, is the repe-
tition of the foliowijig address to the Virgin Mary,
two or three times a day, for a week or more, ac-
cording to the heinousness of the sin committed : —

" Holy Mary,
Holy mother of God,
Holy virgin of virgins,
Mother of Christ,
Mother of divine grace.
Mother most pure,
Mother most chaste,
Mother tuidefiled.
Mother untouched,
Mother most amiable.
Mother most admirable,
Mother of our Creator,
Mother of our Redeemer,
Virgin most prudent,
Virgin most venerable,
Virgin most renowned,
Virgin most powerful.
Virgin most merciful,
Virgin most faithful,
Mirror Of justice.
Seat of wisdom,
Cause of our joy.

Spiritual vessel,
Vessel'of honor, [tion,
Vessel of singular devo-
Mystical rose,
Tower of David,
Tojver of ivory,
House of gold.
Ark of the covenant,
Gate of heaven,
Morning star.
Health of the weak,
Refuge of sinners.
Comfort of the afilicted.
Help of Christians,
Clueen of angels,
Queen of patriarchs,
Queen of prophets,
Queen of apostles, m
Queen of martyrs.
Queen of confessors,
Queen of virgins,
Queen of all saints."

The above tissue of blasphemy is daily, nay,
several times in a day, repeated by Catholic priests
and their 'penitents ; and I am much mistaken, if
there is upon the face of the globe, whether in
Pagan, Mahometan, or Heathen countries or creeds,
to be found any thing equally blasphemous, or
more disgusting to the mind of any individual
who believes in the 'pardon of sin through the

168 8TMOPSI8 or POPEBT,

aianement of Christ ; and I hesitate not to say,
that the Christian, who countenances such a doc*
trine, or contributes, in any way, to its propaga-
tion, denies his Saviour, and shows himself
unworthy of the name ho bears.

To the professed infidel I have nothing to say.
To him, who mocks and scoifs at the Triune God,
I will attach no blame ; with him I have nothing in
common, further than brotherhood of the same
species; but I must ap|;eal to the Christian, and
seriously ask him. Why do you encourage such
blasphemy as this address to the Virgin Mary?
Why do you encourage its propagation amongst
your brethren? Why do yon hold communion
with those who utter it? Would the primitive
Christians, if they now lived, hold any communion
with idolaters? Would they contribute their
money to build temples for Isis and Dagon 7
Would they basely bend the knee to the golden
calf of old ? No. Sooner — much sooner — would
they lay their heads upon the block. They would
look upon it as a denial of their God, and a recan-
tation of their faith in him. Would your Puritan
forefathers give the right hand of fellowship to the
worshippers of a wooden image?. Would they
give theijf money to a priest, to build churches, and
teach his followers that they could hew out for
them images of wood, possessing power to work
miracles, or in other words, to change the laws of
nature, which the Eternal Lato-Maker alone can
change or suspend ?

Custom, the point of the bayonet, or even that
cruel tyrant, early education, lifey enforce such
idolatry on the Old World ; but th^ free-born Amer-
ican, unbiassed by education — unawed by tyrants
— has no apology. His submission to .such doc-

A8 IT WAS AND AS IT 18. 169

trines is an unqualified surrender of his reason, his
religion, aqd the liberties of his country.

When the star of our independence first arose,
it was hailed by the Christian philosophers of the
old world, as a foreshadowing of the downfall of
tyranny, superstition, and idolatry. They looked
upon it as fatal to the bastard Paganism, taught in
the Popish church ; but what must be their aston-
ishment, if permitted at the present day to look
down upon our country, and see our people prac*
tising that same Paganism, nicknamed Christianity,
aud asking from our government protection — a priv-
ilege which the framers of our constitution never
intended should be extended to tyrants or idola,ters !

Here I would stop, and never more put pen to
paper, for or against Popery, did I not see many of
my fellow-citizens, possessing the finest minds and
precious souls, falling victims to the sophistry,
ingenuity, and quibbling casuistry of Popish priests
and bishops.

It is not long since I saw a letter from the Ro-
man Catholic bishop Penwick, of the diocese of
Massachusetts, in which he informs the authefi-
ties of Rome that he is making converts from some
of the first fajnilies in his diocese. This, I pre-
sume, is correct, and these are the very individ-
uals most easily imposed upon. They know noth-
ing of Popery. They are not aware that Papists
have two sides to the picture, which they exhibit
of their church. One is fair, brilliant, dazzling,
and seductive. Nothing is seen in their external
forms of worship but showy vestments, dazzling
lights, and the appearance of great devotion.
Nothing is heard but the softest and most melting
strains of music. No wonder these should capti-
vate minds which are strangers to guilt ,* nor is it

15

170 BTNOPSIS or POPEBT,

Strange that they should bring into their church
those who are most guilty, in the full assurance
that their guilt shall be forgiven, and their crimes
effaced from the records of heaven, by only con-
fessing them to one of their priests.
' Will the heads of those respectable families, to
whom Bishop Fenwick alludes, and from whom he
is making so many converts, permit me to ask
them, whether they have ever reflected upon what,
they were doing, in permitting Romish priests to
come among them ? I have myself been a Cath-
olic priest, as I have more than once stated ; I am
without any prejudice whatever. If I know myself,
I would do an injustice to no man ; but I hesitate'
not to tell those heads of families, whether they
are the parents or guardians of those converts to
the Romish church, of whom mention is made,
that if they have not- used all their authority with
which the laws of nature and of the land invests
them, to prevent these conversions, they are highly
culpable. If they are parents, they have become
the morak assassins of their own children, and per-
haps their own wives. Do any of those fathers
know the questions which a Romish priest puts to
those children, at confession ? Do l\u^bands know
the questions which priests put to their wives, at
confession ? Though a married man, I \vould blush
to mention the least of them.

Though not so fastidious as others, I cannot even
think of them, much less name them, without a
downcast eye and crimsoned cheek, and particularly
those which are put to young and unmarried ladies.

Fathers, mothers, guardians, and husbands of
these converts, fancy to yourselves the most indeli-
cate, immodest, and libidinous questions which the
most immoral and profligate mind can "conceive —

Id IT. Was ano as it is. 171

fancy those ideas put into plain English, and that
by way of question and answer — and you will
then have a faint copception of the conrersation
which takes place between a pampered Romish
priest and your hitherto pure-minded daughters.
If, after two or three of these examinations, in that
$€UTed tribunal, they still continue virtuous, they
are rare exceptions. After an experience of some
years in that church, «ooner — ^ far sooner — would
I see my daughters consigned to the grave, than
see them gp to confession to a Romish priest or
bishop. One is not a whit better than the other.
They mutually confess to each other.
. It was not my intention, when I commenced this
work, to enter into any thing like a discussion of
the doctrines maintained by the Romish church.
My sole object was to call the attention of Ameri-
can Republicans to the dangers which were to be
apprehended, and would inevitably follow, from
the encouragement which they are giving to Popery
amongst them. I have, however, deviated a little
from, my first intention, in more than one an-
ftance; but I trust, not without some advantage
to many of my readers. I am aware that I have
•xposed myself to ^the charge of carelessness and
indifference to public opinion, in not paying more
attention to the construction and order of my sen*
fences. Did I write for fame, or the applause of
this world, I would have been more careful ; but,
as my object is only to state facts, in language so
plain that none can misunderstand it, I have no
doubt the reader will pardon any defects which
he may find in the language, or want of conaecu-
tiveness in the statements, which these pages
contain.

I will now ask the attention of Ihe reader, for a

172 SYNOPSIS or popeeYi

few moments, to the Popish doctrine of Indutgen-
ces ; and I do so because priests and bishops deny
that such things as indulgences are now either
taught or granted to Catholics. They say from
their pulpits and altars that indulgences are neither
bought nor sold by Catholics, and never were.

It is an axiom in our courts of law-^and should
be one in every well-regulated court of conscience
— that falsus in una, falsus in omnibus. The
meaning of this axiom is, that he who tells a false-
hood in one case will do so in every other. If this
be true — and it is as true as that two and two make
four — I pronounce all Roman Catholic priests,
bishops, Popes, monks, friars, and nuns, to be the
most deliberate and wilful set of liars that ever in-
fested this or any other country, or disgraced the
name of religion. I assert, and defy contradic-
tion, that there is not a Roman Catholic church,
chapel, or house of worship in any Catholic coun-
try, where indulgences are not sold. I will even
go further, and say, that there is not a Roman Cath-
olic priest in the United States, who has denied the
fact, that does not sell indulgences himself; and
yet these priests, and these bishops — these men of
sin, falsehood, impiety, impurity^ and immorality —
talk of morals, and preach m^orals, while in their
sleeves, and in their practices, they laugh at such
ideas as moral obligations. Here I would appeal
even to Irish Catholics who are in this country. I
would ask all, or any of them, if ever they have
heard mass in any Catholic chapel in Dublin, or any
other city in Ireland, without hearing published
from the altar, a notice in the following words, or
words of similar import.

" Take notice, that there will be an indulgence
on day, in church. Confessions will

▲8 IT WAS AND AS IT 18. 173

be heard on day, to prepare those who wish to

partake of the indulgence^ I have published
hundreds of such notices myself; and any Ameri-
can, who may visit Ireland, or any Catholic
country, and has the curiosity to enter any of
the Romish ^chapels, can hear these notices read ;
but when he returns to the United States, he
will hear the Roman priests say that " there are
no indulgences sold by the Romish Church."
Beware, Americans ! How long will you be the
dupes of Popish priests ?

Will the reader permit me to take him back a
few years, and show him in what light indulgences
were viewed in the 16th century, under the imme-
diate eye of the Pope and full sanction of the infal^
Uble church!

The name Tetzel, is familiar to e^ry reader. He
was an authorized agent for the sale of indulgences.
I will give you one of his speeches, as recorded on
the authority of Roman Catholic writers, and re-
cently published in this country in D'Aubigne's
History of the Reformation.

Indulgences — says this revereitd delegate of the
Pope — are the most precious and sublime of Ooi's

gifls.

Draw neary and I will give you letters duly
sealed, by which even the sins you shall hereafter
desire to com/mit shall be all forgiven you.

I taould not exchange, rwy privileges for those of
St, Peter in heaven ; for I have saved m>ore souls
by Twy indulgences, than he by his sermons.

There is no sin so great, that the indulgence car^
not remit it, and even if any one should — which is
impossible — ravish the holy Mother of God, let
him pay, let him only pay largely, and it shall
he forgiven - him,. The very moment the mmiey

15*

174 sni^tis cMr Forctfi

goes int9 the Pipe's best, thai moment even the con*
demned soul of the sinner JHes to heaven.

Examine the history of Pagaaism, and yon will
Dot find in its darkest pages any thing more iii&-
mously blasphemous than the above extract, taken
from a speech delivered by one of the Po^'s auc-
tioneers for the sale of indulgences. But even this
would be almost pardonable, if priests did not
try to persuade Americans that those sales have long
since ceased.

It is not more than twelve months since I was in
the city of Principe, Cuba; and I beg permission
to relate to my readers what I have there personally
witnessed ; or, as we would express it in our most
homely language, seen with my own eyes.

At an early hour in the morning, I was aroused
from my slumbers by a simultaneous ringing of all
the beUs in the city. On looking out, I witnessed
the marching of troops, firing of cannons, field-of-
ficers in their full uniforms, all the city authorities
wearing their official robes, with innumerable priests
and friars bustliug about from one end of the city
to the other. My first impression was, that a de-
structive fire must have broken out somewhere, or
that some frightful insurrection had taken place ;
but, on inquiry, what think you, reader, caused
this simultaneous movement of the whole popula-
tion of Principe, amounting in all to about sixty
thousand ? ^' Tell it not in Gath ; publish it not in
the streets of Askelon." A huge bull of indulgences
had arrived from the Pope of Rome, and they
turned out — troops and all — to pay it due bom'
age, and hear it read in the cathedral of Principe.

A day was appointed for the sale of the indul-
gences contained in the aforesaid bull ! Accompa-
nfed by a Scotch gentleman, with whom I had the
pleasure of forming an acquaintance, we went, with

AS IT WAS AND AS IT 18 ^ 175

• %

Others, to the house of the spiritual auctioneer , and
I there purchased of tiie priest, for two dollars and
fifty cents, an indulgence for any ^in I might com-
mit, except four, which I will not mention. These,
r was told, could only be forgiven by the Pope, and
would cost me a considerable sum of money.

Many of our citisens are in the habit of visiting
Havana, and can purchase those indulgences at
any sum from twelve and a half cents to five hun-
dred dollars. Will you still listen to Popish priests,
who tell you that indulgences are neither sold nor
bought now in the Romish church ?

From Cuba I immediately proceeded in the Uni-
ted States' ship Yaudalia, to Vera Cruz, and from
thence to the city of Mexico. I felt desirous of as-
certaining the state of Popery in that exclusively
Popish country, and availed myself of every oppor-
tunity to do so. Accordingly, soon after my arrival
in Mexico, I strolled into the cathedral, and saw in
the centre aisle a large table, about forty feet long
and four wide, covered with papers, resembling, at
a distance, some of our bank checks. Curiosity in-
duced me to examine them, and, instead of bank
checks, I found checks on Heaven ; or, in other
words, indulgences for sins of all descriptions.

I resolved upon purchasing ; but, knowing
full well that Americans, though the most intel-
Ugent people in the world, but long the dupes of
Roman Catholics, would scarcely believe me if I
told them that I bought an indulgence in Mexico. I
went back and requested of our consul there, Mr.
Black, to come with me to fhe cathedral and witness
the purchase of, and payment by me for an induU
gence. Will Catholic priests tell you there is no
truth in this ? If they do, be not hasty in making
up your minds on the question. There are two or

176 ' 8TNOP8I8 OF FOPEaT,

three lines of packets running from New York to
Vera Cruz, and you can easily ascertain^ from Mr.
Black, whether I am telling truth, or whether Pa*
pists are humbugging you, as they have been for
the last half century.

But why go abroad for evidence to fix upon Ro-
mish priests the indellible stigma. of falsehood on the
subject of indulgences ? I have sold them myself,
in Philadelphia and in Eurt)pe ! The first year I
officiated in Philadelphia as a Roman Catholic priest,
I sold nearly three thousand of these indulgences,
as the agent of holy mother, the infallible church ;
and though .several years have el^apsed since, many
of those who bought them are st^ll living in that
city. » •

Some explanation is necessary here, as I cannot
presume that Americans are yet acquainted with a
doctrine called P^ous Frauds, hekl and acted upo»
by the infallible church.

The Pope of Rome and the Propaganda, taking
into consideration the savage ignorance of Ameri-
cans, deemed it prudent to substitute some other
fiame for the usual name indulgences, and some-
thing else for the usual document specifying the na-
ture of the indulgence which was given to pious
sinners in " the New World : " they thought it pos^
sible that Yankees might have the curiosity to read
the written indulgences. This, said they in their
wisdom, must be prevented ; and here is a case
where our doctrine of pious frauds comes beauti-
fully ioto play. After singing the ^^Veni Creator
spiritus^^ — as usual in such cases — they resolved
that indulgences should be in future called Scapu-
las, apd thus piously enable all Roman Catholic
priests and bishops to swear on the Holy Evange-
lists that nx) indulgences were ever sold in the

4« IT WAS AND A8 IT 18. VfT

United States. This is what holy mother calls
jnous fraud.

All the indulgences which I sold in Philadelphia
were called scapulas. They are made of small
pieces of cloth, with the letters I. H. S. written
on the outside, and are worn on the breast. I
will give you an idea of the revenue arising from
the sale of those scapulas in the United States, by
stating to you the price at which I sold them.

The scapula costs the purchaser one dollar. 'The
priest who sells it tells him that to make it thor-
oughly efficacious, it is necessary that he should
cause some masses to be said, and the poor dupe
gives one, five,- teti, or twenty dollars, according to
his or her means, for those masses. I may safely
say, that, on an average, every scapula or indul-
gence sold in the United States costs at least five
dollars. YHiat think you now of the word, the
honor, or the oath of a Popish priest ? Are you
not ashamed to be so long their dupes? Bo you
not blush at the reflection, that you have given so
much of your money, your sympathy, and hospital-
ity, to such arrant knaves ? Sad is the reflection
to me, and dark are the thoughts, that I should have
ever. belonged to a church, which imbodies in its
doctrines all that is degrading to humanity, and re-
duces man, from being *Mittle lower than the an-
gels," to a thing, such as a Papist priest, in full com-
munion with the Pope, having nothing in common
with his fellow-beings but the form of humanity.

You, Americans, who have thoughtlessly united
yourselves with these priests in their church, come
out, I beseech you, from among them. Entail not
upon your children the curse of Popery. *Flee
from them as Lot did from Sodom. To eir is the
lot of man. To fall and to trip in l^is passage

178 SYNOPSIS or pofert,

through life, is the lot of even the best of men.
You have erred in joining the Romish church,
but you will doubly err by continuing in member-
ship with her. The country which gave you
birth is a glorious one ; it has all the advantages of
nature; it is fertilized by-salubrious seas, and its
t)wn beautiful lakes. There is tiothingj you want
which the God of nature has not giveu^ and blessed
for your use. There is but one dark speck upon the
horizon of your national prosperity and greatness,
but that is a' deep one. It is a sad one, and may
be a bloody one. Popery hovers over it, like some
ill-omened bird, waiting only a favorable opportunity
to pounce upon its prey ; or some foul exhalation,
which, being checked in its soaring, turns to a fog,
causing darkness and scattering disease, wherever
it falls. Alas, fellow-citizens, it has already fallen
amongst us, and is growing with fearful rapidity ;
like the more noxious weed, it loves a rich soil \ it
cannotffail to flourish in ours.

Take heed, Americans, lest you allow this weed
to come to maturity. Eradicate it in time ; let it
not ripen amongst you ; allow not its capsule to fili,
blossom, and ripen^ if you do, mark what I telt
you : it will burst, scattering its noxious, sickening,
and poisonous odors amid thd pure breezes of that
religious and political freedom, which have so long,
so gracefully and sweetly played over this beloved
" land of the free and home of the brave."

If you will look around you, and visit our courts
of law ; if you extend your visits to your prisons,
your houses of industry and reformation ; if you
go farther, and examine your penitentiaries, what
will you find ? Permit me to show you what you
will behold in one single city, the city of New
York. This, of itself, were there no other cause

AS TT WAS AND AS IT IS. 179

of alarm, should be sufficient to arouse yx)ur patriot-
ism, for you must not forget that nearly all the for-
eigners, enumerated in the document which I here
subjoin, are Roman Catholics, or reduced to their
present condition while living in Catholic countries.
But let the document speak for itself. It is official,
and may be relied on. It came from a committee
of the Board of Aldermen of the city of New York
«pon the subject of alien passengers. Taking this
as your data, you may be able to form some idea
of what you suffer in money, in virtue, and in
your morals, from the introduction of foreign Pa-
pists among you.

" The Foreign Poor in our Alms-Houses,
AND the Foreign ORiMtNALs in our Penitentia-
ries. — We hasten to lay before^ our readers a high-
ly interesting document, from a committee in the
Board of Aldermen, upon the subject of bonding
alien pa^eiigers in New York. From the docu-
ment, it appears that the bonds of nine firms in this
city exhibit the enormous liabilities of $16,000,000 ;
that of the 602 children supported by the city, at '
the Farm Schools, 457 are the children (many, if
not the most of them, illegitimate) of foreign pa-
rents ; that of the latest-born infants at nurse, at
the city's expense, 32 are foreign, and only two
American, and * that of the whold' number of chil-
dren, 626 4iave foreign parentage, and 195 Amer-
can ; exhibiting the average of more than three for-
eigners to one native, and an alarming increase of
the ratio of foreigners in the more recent births.'

" The whole number of inmates in our peniten-
tiary is l4l9, showing an increase of 400 since July
last ; of these 333 are Americans, and 1198 foreign-
ers. T«he number of prisoners and paupers, to sup-
port whom we all pay taxes, is 4344, showing an
increase, since July last, of nearly 1000.

180 SYNOPSIS or POPEBT,

" In view of these alarming facts, and remember'
ine that over 6U.0U0 immi^ranis were commuted
and bonded here the laM year, the committee make >
some forcible appeals tti the country, which caDiict
be without their etfect. The enormous tazatiou. to
which we are subject, in order to support foreign
paupers and criminals, is a srreat mid growing eril,
which presses heavily upon industry, as well as
upon the character, morals, and politics of the
country."

This is a frightful picture of things, especially in a
country abounding and almost overdo wing wilb the
means of sustaining and abundantly supplying fifty
times the population it contains.

Examine well the results of Popery, in a reli-
gious, moral, and political point cf view, especially
during the last thirty years, and 70U will finid that
there is no vice, no crime, no folly or absurdity,
which time has brought into the old world, as Mil-
ton expresses it, " in its huge drag-net/' that Pa-
pists are not introducing among you ; and there is
no consequence which followed it there which we
shall not see here, unless you are to a man " up and
doing," until this noxious weed is rooted from
amongst you. I wish these unfortunate Papists no
evil ; far be snch a sentiment from my mind. I
would be their best friend; but who can befriend
them, while they permit themselves tp be con-
trolled and deluded by their priests.

A Roman Catholic priest is, pro tanto^ the worst
enemy of man. He degrades his mind by render-
ing him the slave of his church. He debauches
his morals, and those of his wife and children, by
wiAiholding from them the word of God. He
weakens his understanding, by filling hjs mind
with absurd traditions. He evokes, and indirectly

AS IT WAS AND AS IT IS. 181

invites, the indulgence of his worst passions, by
promising him the pardon of his sins. He checks
the noblest aspirations and finest charities of his
soul, by instilling into it the rankest hatred and
animosity towards his fellow-being, whom God has
commanded him to love as he loves himself, but
whom the priest tells him to curse, hate, and ex-
terminate. In a word, he almost degrades him to a
level with thebeast, by teaching him to lower that
holy flag, on which should be written, Glory be to
God on high, — and raising above it the blood-
stained flag of Popery.

This American Protestants know full well. They
feel it. It is known and felt in every Protestant
land ; but it seems as " if some strange spirit was
passing oyer people's dreams." Though found to
be unsound, and even bad policy; though destruc-
tive to agricultural, commercial, and every other in-
terest, yet we see no efforts made to arrest its ad-
vance amongst us. Neither are there any means
Caken, as far as the writer knows, in other Protestant
countries, to suppress this religious, political, and
commercial nuisance; on the contrary, we find that
even in-Great Britain further stimulants are being
applied to Popish insolence.

Sir Robert Peel", the premier of England, has, or
is about introducing a bill into parliament, with a
view of making further appropriations for the Ro-
mish college of Maynooth, in Ireland ; and, much
to my surprise, as well I believe as to that of every
man who correctly understands the spirit of Popery,
he nas some supporters. Even some of the British
reviewers give him high praise.

** The credit to which Sir Robert Peel is, enti-
tled," says one of the British Quarterlies, " is greatly
increased by reason of the prejudices of some of his
supporters ; but (continues the ^asm Q,uarterly)hit

16

182 SYNOPSIS OF FOi'EBT,

resolution is taken and his declaration made/'
This should read, in my humble apprehension,
bis resolution is taken, and his infatuation complete.

I have been a student in that college ; I know
'what is taught and done in that institution. I am
well acquainted with all theminutise of its business
and theological transactions ; and I could tell Sir
Robert Peel that he either knows not what he is
doing, or is a traitor to his governHi^nt ! Does Sir
Bx)bert know that in that college are concocted
all the plans and all the measures which 0'Ck)nnell
is proposing, and has been pursiTing during the last
thirty years, for emancipation, and now for the repeal
of the Union ? Does he know that Maynooth is the
focus from which radiate all the treasons, assassina-
tions, and murders of Protestants, in Ireland ? Is he
aware that this very Maynooth is the great Popish
eccaleobion, in which most of^ those priests who
infest Ireland, and are now infesting the United
States, are hatched? Does he know that Daniel
O'Connell and that college are the mutual tools of
each other ? O'Connell, riding on the backs of
the priests into power and into wealth, and they
alternately mounted upon Dan, advancing the glory
of the infallible church !

It is not probably known to Mr. Peel that thirty
years or more have elapsed since it was secret lif
resolved in Maynooth th&t none but a CathoHc
should wear the British crown, and that he should
receive it as a fief from the Pope of Rome. Every
move and advance which O'Connell makes in re-
peal is a step gained towards this object, and upon
this his ambitious eye rests with intense avarice.
For this, Maynooth and its priests thirst with insa-
tiable desire. It is not many years since O'Connell
and Maynooth asked for emancipation, and they
obuined iu Protestants of England were duped

AS IT WAS AND AS IT IS. 183

into the belief that Papists would now be satisfied,
and unite in supporting the government; but,
scarcely was this granted, when the great agitator,
wUh ike advice and consent ofMaynoothy asked
for — what, think you, reader ? Nothing less than a
dismemberment of the British government — noth-
ing less than a repeal of the Union ; or, in other
wofds, to permit one of the most turbulent dema-
gogues that ever lived, Daniel O'Connell, to become
king of Ireland, and to receive his crown from the
Pope of Rome.

This is now the a/vowed object of repeal; but there
is another object, not yet seen nor dreamed of by those
who are not Roman Catholics ; and I beg the reader
to keep ii in his recollection. 'It is this. O'Connell,
by agitating Ireland, and scattering firebrands
throughout England, believes that he and the Cath-
olics will ultimately succeed in dethroning the
sovereign of England, and placing the crown on
some Popish head. Were the college of Maynoeth
further- endowed through the efforts or folly of Sir
Robert Peel, does he believe, or can any man, ac-
quainted with the genius of Popery believe, that this
would satisfy O'Connell or the Pope's agents in Ire-
land ? The very reverse would be the case. It would
only imbolden them still further. It would only
increase their insolence ; it would only add a new
impetus to their treasonable demands, and give an in-
creased momentum to their disorganizing meetings.

Should the British Government grant all O'Con-
nell asks, or should parliament pass a bill for the re-
peal of the Union, is it to be supposed that O'Con-
nell and the Irish bishops — the sworn allies of
the king of Rome — would be satisfied ? Not
they. The truth is — and I wish I could im-
press it upon the minds of every Protestant in Eng-

184 STMOF8IS OF POPCBT.

land as well as in this country — nothing short of
the total Qcerthroir of the govemtnetit of Great
Britain and the Protestant reiigien will content the
Popish chufch, whose cats-paw Daniel O'Conaell
is. Should Providence, in his inscrutable designs,
grant them this, our experiment in the science of
self-government is at an end. We shall become an
easy {^rey to any alliance which should be formed
against our republican institutions. The jackabof
Popery are amongst us : they have discovered us ;
and Popish priests, the natural enemies of free in-
stitutions and of the Protestant religion, will soon
destroy our- republic and our religion. •

It is useless to deny the fact. It cannot be de-
nied. It were folly to conceal it. The extirpaiion
of heresy^ or, in other words, of the Protestant re-
ligion, is the grand object which (yConnell and the
Pope have now in view ; and, to effect this, they
have judiciously divided and advantageously posted
all their forces. These forces are well officered by
Jesuits and priests, men without honor, prinaiple, or
religion ; whose time is spent in advancing Popery
and the grossest indulgence of their own pas-
sions. The Pope and O'Connell have, in this coim-
try, an army of nearly two millions of reckless des-
peradoes, who have given already strong evidences
of their thirst for American Protestant blood. It is
necessary to watch them well. Americans must
recollect that these men receive their orders from
Rome, through O'Counell, who, I sincerely be-
lieve, is this moment the worst man living, though
the Pope calls him the greatest layman living. He
is upon earth what the pirate is upon the seas, in-
imicus humani generis — the enemy of mankind.
During the last thirty years he has kept the poor of
Ireland in a state of poverty and excitement bor->

AS IT WAS AND AS IT IS. 185

dering upon madness. He has filched from them
the last farthing they possessed. He has withdrawn
them by thousands from their ordinary pursuits of
industry : he has sown amongst them mutual hatred
and a general discontent with their situations in life.
But that is not all. He has pursued the poor people
even to this country. He robs them here of their lit-
tle earnings. They make remittances to him of
hundreds and thousands of dollars ; and this, while
many of them, to my own knowledge, and not a
hundred yards from where I write, are shivering in
the cold blasts of winter, — alitor their good^ while
O'Connell himself is feasting in Ireland, and enjoy-
ing the s[>orts of the chase, on about three hundred
thousand dollars a year.

This is not all. The great agitator, this na-
tional beggar, Daniel OlConnell, has recently dis-
covered that there were some little glimmerings of
Protestantism in France ; that Louis Phillippe was
neither a Don Miguel, a Ferdinand, nor a very
strong advocate of Popery, opens upon him a bat-
tery of abuse. This foul-mouthed brawler was
not content with sowing discord among the poor
Irish, and scattering treason among the people of
Great Britain, he tries what he can do with the
inflammable people of France, who are now in the
enjoyment of more domestic happiness and national
glory than they have had for the last century.
But even this is not enough ; the genius of the
great national beggar, fertile in schemes, treasons,
rebellions, scurrillity, and Popery, must cross the
Atlantic and denounce Americans, who, since the
declaration of their independence, have been the
best and warmest friends of his poor countrymen ;
they have received them, employed them, giving
them bread and clothing in abundance. They

16«

180 STMOPSIS or POPERT,

permitted them to bring with them their priests
and their religion ; they shielded and protected
them in their lives and liberties. This country
was to the Irish, a land flowing with milk and
honey, and they might have enjoyed it, and been
happy, had it not been for their accursed religion
and its priests.

The great Dan saw and felt this. A stop must
be put to it. The holy church saw that this state
of things, would not answer her purposes. The
harmony, which existed for so long a time between
the hospitable and generous Americans and the for-
lorn Irish, must be broken, lest Papists should be-
come Protestants and forget their allegiance to the
Pope ; and accordingly, the great agitator, this
enemy to order, to God, and to peace, commenced
denouncing Americans, as usurers and infidels,
who had not even a national law of their own.
He calls upon the Irish to come out from among
them, and have nothing to do with them.

Soon after this, the Pope sends over some bulls,
making similar demands upon the Irish and all other
Catholics, under pain of excommunication ; and
what is the result ? The name of an Irishman is
now a by-word, in the United States, especially
if he is a Roman Catholic. It is associated with
every thing that is low, vulgar, and bigoted. No
longer do the Americans receive the Irish with
open arms: no longer do they welcome them to
their shores ; nor in fact is it safe for them longer
to do so. And what occasioned this ? That dem*
agogue, O'Connell, and the Pope of Rome.

Does Mr. Peel reflect, when he is moving in
parliament for an additional appropriation for the
college of Maynooth, in Ireland, that he is only
adding fuel to the political fire, which these men
are trying to enkindle, and have actually enkindled

AS IT WAS AND AS IT IS. 187

in a great part of Europe, and in the United States ?
Has the fact escaped his notice, that the Pope and
the GREATEST XATMAN Hving, as his royal holiness
calls O'Connell, have no misunderstanding with
Spain, Portugal, or any other government, strictly
Popish ?

They have no feeling of compassion for the de-
graded Italian, the ignorant and half-starved Span-
iard or Portuguese, or the wretched Mexican slave.
O, no ! It is only for a Papist under a Protestant
government, that their compassion is moved. Their
condition must be ameliorated, or in plain English,
these governments must be overthrown and Popery
must reign supreme. Let Mr. Peel reflect upon this
single fact, and he and his supporters cannot fail
to see, that, in giving further aid to the Popish col-
lege of Maynooth, he is but "sowing dragons'
teeth, from which armed men will spring up." He
is only throwing an Eidditional force into that Tro-
jan horse, whicJi his predecessors had introduced
into unfortunate Ireland, and which Popes and
priests have secretly stolen into these United States.

I know O'Connell well. I have had, in my
younger days, some personal acquaintance with him ;
and I can tell Mr. Peel, that with the college of
Maynooth to back him, he, — Mr. Peel and his
party — are no match for him in craft and intrigue.
All O'Connell's plans for the extirpation of Prot-
estanism are devised in Rome. They are submit-
ted to the Propaganda, and from thence sent to
Maynooth to be there revised and corrected. As
soon as this is done, a copy is forwarded to each of
the metropolitan bishops of Ireland, who return it
with such observations as they deem necessary,
and all things being prepared, secundwm ordinem,
the usual Veni, Creator, is sung ; the project, what-

188 BTNOP8I8 or POPEBT,

ever it may be, is sanctioned ; every priest in Ireland
is prepared to carry it into effect ; and all that now
remains to be done is, to give the great beggar his
secret orders. Wliat can Peel, or his few supporters,
do against such a party as this ? Nothing, unless
the government changes its mode of proceeding
sigainst O^Connell, Maynooth, and the Irish bishops.
But it is to be feared, that this will not be done
while Peel is at the head of affairs.

England, once indomitable, and always brave ;
England, proud of her religion and of her laws,
seems recently to forget her ancient glories. She
is showing the white feather ; she is dallying with
Popery, and singing lullabies to quiet and put
asleep Daniel O'Connell and his Irish bishops, whose
treason and political treachery can only be stopped,
and should have been stopped long since, by con-
signing the greatest layman that ever lived, and a
few of his right reverend advisers, to transportation
for life.

Americans may think this wrong, but though I
have not the least pretension to the faculty of pro-
phesying, I think I can safely tell them, that, in
less than twiMily years, they will have t^ enact
much sovnror liiurs against Roman Catholics than
ciny whirli riro now recorded against them on the
statute hook (if (iroat Britain. It must be borne in
mind, timt P(i|MTy never bends, and therefore it
should inid iniivt bo broken. It was in this college
of MfiyniHiili, nnd from those bishops and priests,
with wlitini Sir Robert Peel is dallying, I first
lofinitMl thai thn king of England was an usurper.
It wtiA th(*y« who first taught me that the Pope of
Homo — virtu fr rta^yonifn-, by virtue of the keys —
^as the rightful sovereign of England, as well as
tf-^all the kingdoms of the earth. It was in the

t

AS IT WAS AND AS IT IS. 189

college of Maynooth, I was taught to keep no faith
with heretics, aud that it was my solemn duty to
exterminate them ; it was there I first learned, that
any oath of allegiance, which I may take to a Prot"
estant government, was null and void, and need
not be kept.

It was at this same college of Maynooth, that
nine tenths of the priests in this country received
their education ; and is it not deplorable to re-
flect, that such men as Sir Robert Peel, in Eng-
land, and several equally distinguished in this coun-
try, should be so entirely blindfolded and unmindful
of the interest of their respective countries, as to
give any countenance, aid, or support to Popery, or
Popish institutions among them ? I trust, however,
and fondly hope, that this imprudent, impolitic,
and ill-advised scheme of Sir Robert Peel's, will be
resisted and thrown out of parliament, with such
marks of disapprobation as becomes every honest
Protestant and true Briton. Will those who
sympathize with Popery in the United States,
look back to the page of history ? and if they will
not take instruction from me, let them take it from
the past. Let them listen to the voice of the dead,
and learn a lesson from them. Let them read the
history of France. Who urged on all the opposi-
tions that have been made, from time to time, to
the government and constituted authorities of that
country ? What were the causes, remote or im-
mediate, of all the blood that has' been shed in
France for centuries back ? The Pope of Rome
and his agents.

It is truly to be lamented, that Napoleon had not
lived longer ; he might, it is true, have caused some
disturbance, and hastened the fall of some of the
tottering thrones of Europe. Spain, Italy, Portugal,

190 SYNOPSIS or POPERT,

and even Austria and Prussia, might hare ceased
to have kings, by divifie rigKt; but a far better
order of things could not fail soon to have arisen.
The Pope would have been hurled from his throne ;
Napoleon would have stripped from him the trap-
pings of royalty ; he would have taught him to feel,
and reduce to practice the heavenly declaration of his
Divine Master, which his holiness now repeats in sol-
emn mockery, regnufn meum non est de hoc mundo.
He would have confined him to his legitimate duty,
in place of spending his time in dictating political
despatches to foreign powers, and sending bulls of
excommunication which are now become laughing-
stocks to all intelligent men ; he might be devoted
to the advancement of true Christianity, and the
world saved from those contentions and disturb-
ances, occasioned by this man or sin and his
agents.

Why will not our statesmen reflect upon these
things, lest in some future contest with the powers
of Europe the scales of victory may be turned
against them by this man of sin, whose agents in
this country, as I have heretofore remarked, amount
to nearly two millions. The defeat or subversion
of the government of Great Britain, by Popish
power, is equivalent to a victory gained by it over
the United States. I tell the Protestants of Eng-
land and of the United States, that their respective
governments are doomed to fall, if Popery gains
the ascendency over either ; and all those who try to
foment or urge any difficulties betjveen them, are
not the friends of either, but the enemies of both.
It is only by the combined efforts of Protestants,
all over the world, that Popery can be crushed, and
peace, and religion, and fraternal love, restored to
mankind.

AS IT WAa AND A8 IT IS. 191

I h&ve produced some facts that admit of no cfo-
nial, and I put the question, confidently, to every
honest and sensible Protestant in England or Amer-
ica, who is unwarped by prejudice or interest,
whether the cause of liberty is tiot in danger, and
likely to decline, if we any longer submit to or
acquiesce m the doctrines of Popery ! And I ask
every reflecting American in particular, whether
the influence which Popery has now in this country,
is not likely to create anarchy, or even despotism
amongst us, though we may preserve the forms of
a free constitution !

I have alluded to the struggles in England with
Popery ; I have mentioned the name of that dema-
gogue, O'Connell, because he is the agent of the
Pope for both countries, and because I believe it is
the mutual interest of the two to unite, and stand
shoulder to shoulder in opposition to Popish in-
trigues, evolved in the proceedings of this selfish
and dangerous man, O'Connell. The designs of
O'Connell and the Irish bishops, and those of the
Pope and his Jesuit agents in the United States,
are proved upon testimony which admits of no. de-
nial, viz : their own admissions. O'Connell, the
mouthpiece of Popery in Ireland, avows publicly
that Protestant England shall not govern Irish Pa-
pists, and the Pope'» agents ki the United States
declare and swear, that Americans shall not rule
them. How are tj;ie English and Americans to treat
this common enemy ? Let them go into the ene-
my's ajpmory, divest themselves of their mawkish
sympathy, buckle on the very armor which their
enemy wears, and adopt the mode of warfare used
by them. Give the common enemy no quarters,
assail them from every point, and the subjects of
his holiness the Pope, either in Great Britain or the

193 STNOPBIS or POPERT,

United States, will not long remain insensible to
the miseries, into which the great national rent beg^
gar has plunged them. This, however, I find
cannot be easily done in the United States. The
difficulty with our people is this, they would find
it much easier to assume the armor used by the
common enemy, than to lay down that of sympa-
thy and hospitality, which they have heretofore
worn, and thus, although a moral and religious
people, their zeal is but dim and sluggish, while
that of their adversaries, the Pope and his agents,
burns higher and clearer every day. This must
not be. God and freedom forbid it.

The political contest, which has just ended, has
tended greatly, at least for the moment, to im-
bolden and encourage Popery. Each party courted
the Papists, and they supported him from whom
they expected most favors. They laid their meshes,
nets, and traps for President Polk; but I believe
they have been " caught in their awn traps^ That
gentleman is said to be a moral and religious man,
and one of the last in the world to countenance idola-
try, blasphemy, or treason amongst us. But now that
the contest is over, and no further avowal of distinct
party principles is necessary or profitable, it is to be
hoped that the good and virtuous of both parties
will unite in passing -such laws, as will shield our
country and our people from any further Popish in-
terference with our government or oin* institutions.
He, who shall bring about this desirable result,
and those who aid him, will merit the gratitude of
their country.

In the present position of parties, much is ex-
pected from the great " Arnerican Republican " asso-
ciation, which has recently been formed throughout
the United States. Every eye is fixed upon "its

AS IT WAS AND AS IT IS. 193

movemeuts, and the hopes of all Protestants hang
upon its success. Do not disappoint us, American
Republicans. You alone can save the Protestant
foreigner from the persecutions of Popery, and we
call upon you, by the memory of your sires, to shield
us from it.

You have a great part to act ; you are young ; but
the purity of your principles, and the justice of your
cause, abundantly supply what is wanting in age.
You are the mediator^ between two great politi-
cal parties, whose extremes cannot meet, or if they
did, would only tend to render their respective
centres still more corrupt, by their internal powers
of contamination. Neither of those parties will
ever consent to be governed by the other ; nor has
either of them the moral courage to come forth boldly
and say to Popery^ Stand off, thou unclean thing.
Thou hast polluted all Europe for ages past ; stand
aloof from us ; wash thy polluted hands and blood-
stained garments ; until then, thou art unfit to en-
ter the temple of our liberties. Thou art, in thy
very nature, impure, and hast already diffused
amongst us too much of thy deadly poison before we
took the alarm. Like an infected atmosphere, thou
hast silently entered the abodes of moral health;
thou hast penetrated the strong holds of our free-
dom, without giving us any warning! Avaunt,
thou SCARLET LADY OP BABYLON ! rcccdc to the Pon-
tine marshes, whence thou earnest, and no longer
infect the pure air of freedom ! The foul stains of
thy corruption shall no longer be permitted to spot
the pure and unsullied insignia of independence!

I am aware that the sympathizers with Popery
will say that such language as the above is rather
harsh. They will tell' us it is cruel. They will
assert, in their usual mawkish style, that it was

ir

194 SYNOPSIS OF FOFERT.

never the intention of the framers of our constitu-
tion to treat those who come amongst us with un-
kindness. They themselves invited the oppressed
of every land, creed, and people, to our shores.
They extended the hand of friendship to all, with-
out distinction of party, sect, or religion. So they
did, and so do their descendants. Any and every
man is welcome to this country. Whether he
comes from the banks of the Euphrates, shores of
the Ganges, or bogs of Ireland, he is sure to re*
ceive from Americans a warm and hospitable recep-
tion. His person, his liberty, and his property, are
protected; but there is a condition under which
this reception is given, and without which it never
should be granted. The recipient of all tliese fa-
vors is required to yield obedience to the mild and
equitable laws of the United States ; forswearing
at the same time, all allegiance to any other king,
potentate, or power whatever. This conditiorj, so
just, so reasonable, and so politic, is generally
complied with Jby all foreigners, who land in these
United States, with the exception of Roman Cath-
olics. All others come amongst us, and either re-
fuse at once to become citizens, or honestly incor-
porate themselves with us. The Papist alone re-
fuses incorporation with Americans. He alone
comes amongst us the avowed enemy of our insti-
tutions, and the sworn subject of a foreign king,
the Pope of Rom^ Among all the foreigners who
land upon the shores of this country, none but Pa-
pists avow any hostility to its institutions. They
alone would dare say, " Americans sha'^nH rule us^
On them alone have Americans just cause to look
as traitors to their government, and foes to their
religion ; and they alone should be singled out as
just objects of fear and jealousy.

AS IT WAS AND AS IT IS. 196

I have, in the preceding pages, traced the origin of
the Papal temporal power to its proper source ; and
endeavored to follow th^ course of its turbid and
muddy stream, through many of its sinuosities and
canonical — if I may use such a term — gyrations,
down to the middle of the 16th century. I freely
admit that I have made many " short cuts,^^ and
have been obhged to pass unnoticed several of its
acute angles. Were I to proceed ^^ pari passu ^^
"with its course, tajcing all its bearings and accom-
panying them with the necessary observations, it
would require a volume at least ten times as large
as that which I now respectfully present to the
public. I shall, however, if Providence leaves me
health, continue the subject of Popert as it was
AND as it is. I will dissect the Body Papal,/so
that every American, whodionors me with the pe-
rusal of my observations, will see its inmost struc-
ture. I have studied its anatomy; I understand
all its minutiae ; and if any can view the skeleton
without horror and shame for having so long con-
tributed to feast and fatten the monster, it shall not
be my fault. The performance of this operation
"will be, in every point of view, extremely unpleas-
ant. Whichever way I look, the prospect must be
disagreeable. Behind, I can only see an object
in which I once felt an interest, and with which I
was unfortunately connected : and before, nothing
is to be seen but further persecutions and calum-
nies. But, cost what it may, it shall not be said
of me by friend or foe, thai I have shrunk from
the performance of a duty which I owe to the
cause of morality, and to my adopted country.

I have merely touched upon the persecuting and
treach^rous spirit of the Popish church. The profli-
gacy of its priests are scarcely noticed by me as
yet. Its idolatries and blasphemies are barely allu-

196 8TN0F8IS or POPEBT

«

ded to. Indulgences, miracles, and the iniquities
committed in nunneries, are scarcely glanced at
The twilight view, which I have given of these
subjects, is only intended for a better observation
of them, under the full light of some mid-day sun.

Before I conclude this volume, permit me to
give you a brief view of Popery as it is at this
very day on which I write. I have a double
object in doing this. First, what I am about
stating has perhaps escaped the notice of many
of my fellow-citizens; and secondly, it will confirm
one of the most serious charges which I have
made against Papists ; and thirdly it will prove to
a demonstration, that Roman Catholic priests and
bishops, who surround us and live amongst us, are
a set of barefaced liars, whose entire disregard for
truth fits them for no«other society than that of
brigands and felons.

The reader will bear in mind that Roman Cath-
olics are the loudest advocates of religious freedofn.
He will also not forget that I have charged them
with being its most inveterate enemies. The Pa-
pists and myself are now fairly at issue.

Either they are right and I ain wrong, or mce
versa, I have sustained my accusation against
them by proofs derived from their own general coun-
cils, and from their uniform practice for centuries
back. Still, these Catholics will say and assert
publicly, in their pulpits, and at their meetings,
religious and political, that they were always and
are now the advocates of religious toleration. Let
the past for a moment be forgotten. I presume
no one will question what the practices of the Ro-
mish church have been in relation to religious
toleration in former times. Let us rather see
what it is now among our neighbors in Madeira ;
anA as all Roman Catholics are a unit in faith and

AS IT WAS AND AS IT IS. 197

practice, we may judge from what we see m Ma-
deira, of what may be seen, and if not seen, is felt,
in the United States. I submit the following let-
ter to my readers. It is from one of the most re-
spectable men in Madeira.

'^ Religious Persecution in Madeira. We
have just had a sort of miniature civil war. Dr.
Rally, who has been converting the natives, is the
original cause of it. He converted the woman
they sentenced to death here not long since.
Having been imprisoned for some time, the doctor
was at last liberated, and resumed his habit of
preaching to the people in his house ; and it was
not generally known, until within a short time,
that he had made several hundred converts. On
ascertaining this fact, the Governor, Don Oliva de
Correa, at the request of the priests of the estab-
lished church, who feared that the people might
throw off their allegiance to the Roman Catholic
church, appointed a country police to prevent the
Protestants from assembling together. On Sunday
week, the converts of St. Antonia de Sierra, while
engaged in prayer, were assailed by the police, who
broke in the door, knocked down the person who
was officiating in the service, broke the benches,
and dispersed the people, except four or five whom
they took prisoners, and then proceeded to town.
After going two miles, the police were overtaken
by the populace, armed with pitchforks, rusty mus-
kets, hoes, &c.

" The police were overpowered, and after being
ducked in the river by the mob, they were tied
together by the hands and feet and left on the
road ; the Protestants returning to the mountains
with their rescued comrades. One of the police
officers, who escaped from the mob, made his way
17*

198 SYNOPSIS or popert,

■

to town and alarmed the government. Three hun-
dred and fifty soldiers were immediately ordered
out ; the police were released from their confine-
ment on the road-side, and the army marched to
the villages of the ** Rallyites." The dwellings
were fired indiscriminately ; several aged women,
who could not fly to the mountains, were put to
the torture, to make them reveal the places of con-
cealment of the * heretics.' The Catholic army
then proceeded up the mountain to massacre the
Protestants ; but in passing the foot of the hill they
were assailed by the Protestants above, who threw
down stones and rocks upon them, killing eight
soldiers and wounded forty others severely. As
soon as the troops could be gathered after their
fright and alarm, they opened a deadly fire upon
the Protestants, chasing them five miles over the
country, taking eighty or ninety prisoners, and kill-
ing and wounding several of the unfortunate
wretches.

" The army marched their prisoners down to the
sea-coast, to Machico, where they were put on
board the Diana fifty gun frigate, and taken thence
to Funchal. The vessel of war, Don Pedro, was
left at anchor on Machico to awe the country, but
another, the Youga, which had been despatched
to Lisbon with official accounts of the battle, ran
aground and had to return for repairs. The Don
Pedro will therefore go to Lisbon. The captives
will be sent to Lisbon, I suppose for trial, some
time next week. Dr. Rally, the^ cause of the dis-
turbance, remains at his house unmolested, which
is singular. I don't think they will let him be
quiet long. The Yorktown, American sloop-of-war,
was here the other day. We have had a beautiful
winter so far. About four hundred pepple have
come here this year for the benefit of their health."

AS IT WAt AMD AS IT IS. 199

The above letter was received in New York a
few weeks ago, and needs no comment. If any Pa*
pist doubts it, he can easily write to Madeira and
ascertain its truth or falsehood. Until then he has
no reason to be surprised if American Protestants
shall refuse to hold any connection or communion
with them.

There is one feature in the letter to which I
would call the attention of the reader. It shows
not only the persecuting spirit of Popery, but the
uniformity and consistency of their mode of opera-
tion. Go back to the former persecutions of the
Popish church against the followers of Wickliffe
and the Huguenots. " The Wickliffites had to fly to
the mountains for shelter ; but they were hotly pur-
sued and cut down by the swords of their fiendish
persecutors. They were massacred and butchered,
even in the fissures and cavcys of their native rocks
and mountains. The Protestants in Madeira, only
a few weeks ago, had to fly to the mountains from
a bloodthirsty, Popish soldiery, headed by their
priests and monks. There, at our very doors, and
in a country with which we have treaties of friend-
ship and alliance. American Protestants are butch-
ered and slaughtered by Popish savages, under the
mask of religion ; and when the news of this trans-
action reached our own shores, what action has
been taken upon the subject ? Was there any in-
dignation meeting called ? Were there any resolu-
tions passed ? Were there any ambassadors ap-
pointed in New England or elsewhere to ascertain
the cause of this bloody tragedy ? Did our govern-
ment demand any explanation from the authorities
at Madeira ? The writer is not aware of any. Our
government is too much occupied with affairs of
more importance, viz., Who shall be Secretary of

SOO STM0P8IS -OV POPERT,

State^ tpno shall be Secretary of War, ice. The
interest of morality seems a matter of minor im-
portance with the *' powers that be." The blood
of our Protestant fellow-citizens, the cries of their
widows and orphans cannot reach the eye or ear of
our grave iaw-makers. The question with them
seems, not what our country may become, by the
treachery and persecutions of Popery, which are
witnessed along the whole line and circumference
of our own coast — a question of far more impor-
tance to them seems to be, Who shall hold the fat-
test office, or whether Massachusetts or South Caro-
lina is in the right on the subject of the imprison-
ment^ of a few citizens, belonging to the former,
by the latter : while they witness all around, and
in the very midst of them, Popish priests and
bishops persecuting their fellow-citizens abroad, and
gnawing at their very vitals at home. Fatal delu-
sion this on the part of our government and people !

I have accused the Romish church and her priests
of treachery, prevarication, and fraud, in all their
dealings with Protestants. Their guilt has been
established by proofs and evidences such as they
cannot deny, viz., the canons of their church and
their own admission. There is not a people in the
world more anxious for correct information on all
subjects than Americans ; and it is, therefore, the
more singular that they should be so indifferent to
the all-important subject of Popery.

This, however, may be accounted for, in some
measure. The moral monstrosities — if I may use
such language — of Popery, are such, that it requires
something more than ordinary faith to believe them,
and a greater power of vision than generally falls to
the lot of man, even to look at them. There are
objects on which the human eye cannot rest with-

AS IT WAS AND AB IT 18. 201

•

out blinking, and upon which notliing but force or
fear can induce it to fix its gaze for any length of
time. It will always gladly turn from them, and
rest upon something else. This may account for
the fact that my adopted countrymen and fellow
Protestants pay so little attention to the subject of
Popery, or the hideous crimes and revolt^^ng deeds
which it has ever taught, and its priests have ever
practised.

I cannot otherwise account for the apparent in-
difference and unconcern of our government and
people on the subject of our relations with Catholic
countries, and the encouragement given to Popish
emissaries in the United States. I have myself seen
so much of Popery, that my mind shrinks from the
further contemplation of its iniquities. I can assure
my Protestant friends, that nothing but an inherent
love of liberty, and a desire, as far as in my power,
to ward off that blow which I see Popery treacher-
ously aiming at Protestants and the Protestant re-
ligion in the United States, could ever have induced
me to publish these pages ; and, although I feel that
I have already drawn too heavily on the indulgence
of my readers, I cannot dismiss the subject without
laying before them another evidence of Popish
treachery, which occurred only a few weeks ago,
on the island of Tahiti.

It seems that' in 1822, or thereabouts, an indi-
vidual, named M. Moerenhout, representing him-
self a native of Belgium, arrived in Valparaiso, and
obtained a situation as clerk from Mr. Duester, the
Dutch consul in that city. After some time, he
gains the confidence of his employer, on whom, to-
gether with two more merchants, he prevailed to
charter a vessel, and send a cargo by her to the So-
ciety Islands, with himself as supercargo. ' They

STNOPBIt or POPERTi

did so accordingly in 1829, and the worthy super-
cargo appropriated to his own use the whole profits
of the voyage, and continued for some time longer
upon the island, selling whisky, brandy, and other
liquors. In 1834, (says theQuarteily Review, from
which, together with other sources, I derived my
information,) this gentleman departed for Europe,
with a view of communicating with the French
government ; or rather, as I am informed upon good
authority, to confer with the order of Jesuits in that
country. On his way to Europe, this Moerenhout
carne to the United States, obtained some letters of
introduction in New York and Boston, with which
he piPoceeded to Washington ; and on the strength
of them, was appointed United States' consul for
Tahiti. With the title of consul-general of theUnited
States, this diplomatist proceeds to France, and im-
mediately — no doubt according to previous arrange-
ment — entered into all the plans of the Jesuits for
the extirpation of Protestantism in the Society
Islands. He became the agent of the Propaganda
in France, an institution placed under the patron-
age of St. Xavier. The duty of converting all
the islands of the Pacific, from the South to the
North Pole, is committed to this'Propaganda, and a
decretal to that effect was confirmed by the Pope on
the 22d June, 1823. A bishop was appointed for
Eiastern Oceania, and several priests preceded him
to the islands. Among these priests was an Irish
catechist, by the name of Murphy. The bishop, it
seems, established himself at Valparaiso, while the
priests proceeded to Tahiti.

I here give an instance of the manner in which
those Popish missionaries discharge their duties. You
will find it the October number of the Foreign Quar-
terly Review. You may rely upon the statement.

AS IT WAS AND AS IT IS. 203

The Popish missionaries hare acted in the case just
as I should have done myself when a Romish priest,
in obedience to the instructions given by the in/al-
Uble church,

" I always bear about me," says the reverend
Jesuit, Patailon, " a flask of holy water and another
of perfume. I pour a little of the latter upon the
child, and then, whilst 'its mother holds it out
tvithout suspicion, I change the flasks and sprinkle
the water that regenerates, unknown to any one but
myself." This is what the holy church calls a
piotis fraud; and this is what the priests of Boston
are doing, in a little diflerent manner, to the chiU
dren of Protestant mothers. In Tahiti, Popish
priests make Christians by jugglery, under the very
eye of the mother. In the United States they make
Christians of Protestant children by ordering their
Catholic nurses to bring them secretly to the priest's
house to be baptized.

But let us resume the subject of the Jesuit mis-
sionaries from the Propaganda in Prance to Tahiti.
The Jesuits, always wary and cautious, deemed it
necessary, before they landed upon the island in a
body, to send one of their number in advance, in
order to ascertain " how the land lay," and what
their prospects 'of success were ; and accordingly,
in 1836, the Irish Jesuit, Murphy, proceeded alone,
disguised as a carpet) ter, and landed safely at a place
called Papeete. The unsuspecting inhabitants re-
ceived the scoundrel among them just as Ameri-
cans receive Jesuits in this country ; and while he
was acting the traitor, and clandestinely writing
to Jesuits, they shared with him the hospitality
of their tables — precisely as Americans have done,
for the last fifty years, to other Murphies, in this
country.

904 SYNOPSIS or popebt,

During this whole time that Murphy was on the
island, working as a carpenter, he had secret in-
terviews with the American consul, Moerenhout,
until he succeeded in bringing into the island his
brother missionaries. They could not, however,
remain on the island without permission from the
queen, and the payment of a certain sum of money.
The queen refused them permission to remain, un-
der any circumstances, fearing, as she well might,
that some treason was contemplated against her
government. The Jesuits called a meeting, and,
under the patronage of the American consul, they
urged their demand to remain, comparing themr
selveis to St. Peter, and the Protestants to St.
Simon, the magician. I use the language of the
Cluarterly.

I must here observe, in justice to our government,
that the conduct of Moerenhout, United States'
consul at Tahiti, was prom[>tly disavowed, and he
was immediately removed from office. But, not-
withstanding the improper interference of the
American consul, they were ordered to leave the
island. It is due to the Protestant missionaries
to state, that they took no part whatever m the
expulsion of these Jesuits ; nor could they, in
justice to themselves or to the cause of morality,
interfere in preventing it. A French writer,
speaking of the occupation of Tahiti, says : " The
Catholic priests, instead of going to civilize bar-
barous nations and checking debauchery, seem,
on the contrary, only desirous of becoming rivals
to the Protestant ministers, and decoying away
their proselytes." As soon as the expelled Jesuits
arrived in Prance, one of them proceeded to Rome,
to consult with his holiness the Pope; the result
of which was, an immediate order to a French

XB IT WAS AlTD AS IT 18. 805

captain, named Dupetit Thonan, who was then
stationed at Valparaiso, to proceed to Tahiti, and de-
mand reparation for a supposed indignity to France.

Here we see the influence of the Pope, and
an evidence of Jesuit intrigue. In what consistefd
the alleged indignity to France? Had not the
queen of Tahiti the right to receive or refuse those
Jesuit missionaries, if she had evidence that they
w^ere spies among her people ? If it appeared clear
to her that the object of those reverend intriguers'
visit was only to overthrow her government, and
to decoy away from the path of virtue and re-
ligion both herself and her subjects, what right
had Louis Phillippe or the French government to
look upon this as an indignity to the French na-
tion ? The fact is, if the whole truth were known,
Louis Phillippe knew but little of this affair, and
his minister for foreign affairs, or some other mem-
ber of his cabinet, was either imposed upon or
bribed by Jesuits.

A statement of the difficulties, into which the
hitherto peaceful island of Tahiti has been thrown
by Jesuits, could not fail to be interesting to my
readers ; but, as the whole affair is to be found in
the Foreign duarterly, I refer the public to that
work. I cannot, however, dismiss the subject,
without asking the reader's particular attention to
the Irish Jesuit, Murphy, who figures so con-
spicuously in the transaction. A brief view of the
conduct of this reverend spy cannot fail to have a
good effect, and must tend greatly to remove that
delusion under which the Protestants of the United
States have so long labored.

I have been recently conversing with a very intel-
ligent member of the Massachusetts legislature, on
the subject of Jesuitical intrigue. I stated to him

18

206 flmoFsit or popeeTi

that it was a common practice among them, ever
since the formation of that society, to keep spies in
all Protestant countries, under various disguises and
in different occupations. But though I had given
him such proofs as could scarcely fail to satisfy any
man, yet he replied, as American Protestants gen-
erally do, on all such occasions, " Those iitneg are
gofU' by. The Romish church is 7iOt at all iwBj
what it teas in the days you speak of.^^ But, when
the fact was made plain to him — when he learned
from authority, admitting of no doubt, that only a
few weeks ago, a Jesuit, and an Irishman too, crept
into Tahiti in the disguise of a carpenter, and con-
tinued to work there, in that character, until he laid
a proper foundation for the overthrow of the Protes-
tant religion on that island, his incredulity seemed
to vanish ; the cloud, which so long darkened his
vision, evaporated into thin air ; and my impression
is, that he no longer thinks our country safe, unless
something is done to exclude forever all Papists,
without distinction, from any participation in the
making and administration of our laws.

Tliis Murphy^ to whom allusion is made, ap-
peared in great distress when he arrived among the
natives of Tahiti. He seemed entirely indifferent
upon the subject of religion ; all he wanted, appai^
ently, was employment. This was procured for him
among the simple natives by the American consul^
both of whom soon united themselves together, ac*
cording to some previous arrangement ; and, while
they were '^ breaking bread " with the natives, they
were laying plans for their destruction. A blow was
aimed at their national and moral existence, and the
death of both has nearly been the result. Thus we
see a harmless and inoffensive people, only just res-
cued from a savage state by the laudable efforts of

AS IT WAS AND AS IT IS. 90T

Protestant missionaries, partly thrown back again
into their original condition by infidel Popish priests,
whose y god is their belly," whose religion is alle-
^ianoe to their king, the Pope, and whose sports
suad pastimes consist in debauching the good and
virtuous of every country-

The flourishing condition of Tahiti, before the
Jesuits found access to it, is well known in this
country. Peace, plenty, and religion flourished
among its people — all pjroduced by the efforts of our
Protestant missionaries. But what sad changes have
Jesuits efiected among them ! By their intrigues
they have catised a difficulty between Tahiti and
France. The French government fancied itself
insulted; false representations were made by the
Jesuits; and, with the aid of their brethren in
France, the government was deceived and the isl-
and blockaded, until reparation was made by the
inoffensive queen, Pomare. I will quote an in-
stance of the conduct of the French — all Roman
Catholics, and under the advice of Jesuits — after
they entered Tahiti. It is taken from the Foreign
ftuarterly Review of Ckjtober, and not denied by
the French -themselves.

" After persuading four chiefs, who were author-
ized to act in the absence of the queen, to affix their
names to a document, asking * French protection,'
a boat was sent by the French captain, Dupetit
Thenars, to a place called Eimeo, with B,pere7nptory
order for queen Pomare to sign it within twenty-
four hours,

" It was evening before the boat reached the place
whither Pomare had retired with her family. Her
situation was one in which it is the custom for wo-
men to receive the most anxious and respectful at-
tention from all of the opposite sex, especially if

inopsis ov popESv,

they call themselves geDtleinen. She was #rery
murrieiit ex|iccted to gire birth to a child : and. ac-
cording to custom, hiad come to lie-in at Eimeo,
leaving Paraita, who basely betrayed his trust, re-
gent in her absence. Ou learning the demand made
by Thr) liars, the queen, surprised and alarmed, sent
fur Mr. Sinii^son, the missionary of the island, and
a long and ]jainful consultation ensued. Armed re-
sistance was obviously impossible. The only al-
ternative was between dethronement and {votection.
Pomare at first determined to choose the former,
but her friends pressing round her, represented that
Great Britain, the court of appeal whither all the
grievances of the world are carried for redrew,
would certainly interfere ; that subjection would be
but temporary, and that she would ultimately tri-
umph. Stretched on her couch, in the first pangs
of labor, the unfortunate queen withstood all sup-
plications until near morning. Mr. Simpson ob-
serves, that this was indeed 'a night of tears.'
Many hours were passed in silence, interrupted only
by the sobs of the suffering Pomare.

'^ Let us leave her for a while, and turn to consider
in what manner the French buccaneer and his crew
passed the same night. We refer to no inimical
statement. Our authority is a letter ^ich went
tlic round of all the Paris papers, written by an of-
ficer on board the Reine Blanche, who did not seem
to perceive any thing at all immoral in what he re-
lated. His intention was merely to excite the envy
of his fellow-countrymen by detailing the delights
that were to be found in the new Cythera of Bou-
gainville. We dare not follow him into his details.
It will be enqugh to state that more than a hundred
wonien were enticed on board the ship, and there
compelled to remain all night, under pretence that

AS IT WAS AND, AS IT IS. 909

it would be dangerous to row them back in the dark.
Some were taken to the officers' cabin, others were
sent to the youthful midshipmen, the rest to the
crew. , "J/Vhen this account made its appearance, the
government, alarmed at the effect it might produce,
published an official declaration in the ' Moniteur,'
(30 JIars,) addressed to 'French mothers,' deny-
ing the truth of the statement. But M. Guizot, or
whoever directed this disavowal, merely argued
from the silence of his own despatches — if they
were silent — and not long before, in the voyage of
Dumont d'Urville, published by royal *ordon-
nance,' a description of conduct, still more atro-
cious, had been given to the world.

" Towards morning, the sufferings of Pomare in-
creasing, her resolution began to fail her, and at
length she signed the fatal document. Then burst-
ing into a flood of tears, she took her eldest son,
aged six years, in her arms, and exclaimed, * My
child, my child, I have signed away your birth-
right ! ' In another hour, with almost indescriba-
ble pangs, she was- delivered of her fourth child.
Meanwhile the boat which carried the news of her
yielding, sped for the port of Papeete. The sea
was rough, and the wind threatened every moment
to shift. The white sail was beheld afar off by the
look-out on the mast of the Reine Blanche, and it
was thought impossible she could reach by the ap-
pointed time. Thouars, however, troubled himself
but little about all these things. He was fixed in
his resolve, that if the answer did not arrive before
twelve he would bombard Papeete. The guns
were loaded, gun-boats stationed along the shore ;
and whilst the frightened inhabitants crowded down
to the beach, beseeching, with uplifted hands, that
their dwellings might be spared, the ruthless pirate,

18*

210 SnOPBIl OF POPEJMTi

bearing the commission of the king of France, was
giving his orders, and burning to emulate the ex-
ploits of Stopford and Napier at St. Jean d 'Acre,
by destroying a few white-washed cottages on the
shore of a little island in the Pacific. Herol wor-
thy the grand cross of the legion of honor which
was bestowed on him for this achievement ! Worthy
the sword raised by farthing subscriptions among
* haters of the English,' which was presented to
him for so distinguished an exploit ! What exulta-
tion must have filled his breast as he beheld the
white sail of the boat scud for a moment past the
entrance of the port ; and what sorrow, when, by a
skilful tack, it bore«manfully along the very skirts
of the breakers, and rushed through the hissing and
boiling waters into the placid bay of Papeete, ex-
actly one half hour before mid-day!

'^ We must pass rapidly over the arrangements
which followed. The treaty of protection pro-
fessed to secure the external sovereignty to the
French, but to leave the internal to the queeq.
The former, however, were eoipowered * to take
whatever measures they might judge necessary for
the preservation of harmony and peace.' When
we learn that the ever recurring M. Moerenhout was
appointed royal commissioner to carry out this
treaty, we at once perceive that Pomare had in re-
ality ceased to reign. How this base person em-
ployed his power may be discovered from the fact,
that it became his constant habit, when he desired
to obtain the signature of the queen to any distaste-
ful document, to vituperate her in the lowest lan-
guage, and shake his fist in her face.

" It has been asserted, in this country and else-
where, that the passive resistance of the queen and
people to the proper establishment of the protecto-

AS IT WAS AND AS IT IS. 211

rate, did not begin until the arriwil of Mr. Pritch-
ard on the 25th of February, 1843. The object
of this has been to attribute all the subsequent dif-
ficulties experienced by the French to him. But
the fact is well known, that before he made his ap-
pearance the queen had written to the principal
European powers, stating that she had been comr-
pelled against her will to accept the protectorate of
France. On the 9th of February also, a great pub-
lic meeting, presided at by the queen, was held, in
which speeches of the most violent description
were made. It was resolved, however, that by no
overt act the French should be furnished with an
excuse for further arbitrary proceedings. The de-
termination come to, was to write for the opinion of
Great Britain.

** The niorning after this meeting Moerenhout went
to the queen and acted in a manner so gross and in-
sulting, that she determined to complain to Sir
Thomas Thompson, of the Talbot frigate, who
promised her protection. All this happened, as we
have seen, before the arrival of Mr. Pritchard, who,
in truth, instead of proving a firebrand, introduced
moderation and caution into the councils of Po-
mare. Sir Toup Nicolas, it is true, commanding the
Vindictive, which brought our consul to Tahiti, did
go so- far, despising some of the forms which were
perhaps necessary, as threaten that unless the
French ceased to molest British subjects, he would-
use force to compel them. He is said even to have
cleared for action. When we consider what was
daily passing under his eyes, there was some ex-
cuse for this gallant captain's warmth. Setting
aside the insults offered to our own countrymen, he
was the spectator of constant tyrannical conduct
towards the queen. Messrs. Reine and Yri^naudi

212 sTifOPsis or popert,

under whose name all this was done, were but in-
struments in the hands of the sagacious Moeren-
hout. The following letter of queen Pomare,
hitherto, we believe, unpublished, will throw some
light on his CQiiduct. It is addressed to Toup Nic-
olas, who took measures to fulfil the wishes it
contains.

« PAorAE, Marek 5, 1844.

*0 Commodore,

'I make known unto you that I have oftentimes
been troubled by the French consul, and on ac-
count of his threatening language I have left my
house. His angry words to me have been very
strong. I have hitherto only verbally told you of
his ill-actions towards me ; but now I clearly make
tl^se known to you, O Commodore, that the French
consul may not trouble me again. I look to yon to
protect me now at the present time, and you will
seek the way how to do it.

* This is my wish, that if M, Moerenhout, and
all other foreigners, want to come to me, they must
first make known to me their desire, that they may
be informed whether it is, or is not, agreeable to
me to see them.

* Health and peace to you,

' O servant of the dueen of Britain ,
(Signed) * Pomare,

* dueen of Tahiti, Mourea, &c. &c.'

" During the time that elapsed between the estab-
lishment of the protectorate and the third visit of
Dupetit Thouars to Tahiti, the only overt act
which the. French could complain of was the hoist-
ing of a fancy flag by the queen over her house.
Whatever difficulties existed at the outset, had been
in reality overcome in spite of the * intriguing Mr.

JL8 IT WAS AKD AS IT IS. 21tt^

Pritchard.' Even M. Guizot has declared in his
place in the chamber of deputies : ' There existed
on the admiral's arrival iioue of those difficulties
which are not to be surmounted by good conduct,
by f^udence, by perseverance, by time, or which
require the immediate application of force.' Nev-
ertheless, on the first of November, 1843, our buc-
caneering admiral entered the harbor of Papeete,
and wrote immediately to inform the queen that
unless she pulled down the flag she had hoisted, he
would do so for her, and at the same time depose
her. In spite of his threats, however, she refused
compliance ; and Lieutenant D'Aubigny landed at
the head of five hundred men, to occupy th^ island.
The speech in which this person inaugurated French
dominion in Tahiti was one of the richest speci-
mens of bombast and braggadocia ever uttered.

'^ Mu|:h merriment might be Accited by its repeti-
tion, but it has already caused the sides of Europe
to ache, more than once. Suffice it to say, that the
deposed queen fled on board the Biitish ship of
war, the Dublin, commanded by Capt. Tucker, and
Papeete was, for many days, like a town taken by
storm. Drunkenness, debauchery, rioting, filled its
streets, and every means were taken to undo what
the missionaries had, by half a century's labor,
accomplislied."

The above is another melancholy evidence of
the spirit of Popery ; and if any thing can open the
eyes of our people to a sense of danger from it, this
evidence cannot fail to do so. I lay it down as a
truth — though I may be censured for the boldness
of such an assertion — that there is not a man of .
common sense, or ordinary penetration, who does
not see, at a glance, that our danger as a nation,
and our morals as a people, are eminently perilled

214 STifOPSis or porcmT,

by the continnance of Popery amongst us. Thei«
are certain truths \^hich need not be proTed ; they
prove themselves. Like the sun. which is seen by
its own light, they-carry with them their own evi*
dence ; and, among those self-evident truths, I see
none more clear or more lucid, than that Popery,
which has taken root in this country, will — if not
torn up and totally nprooted before Fong- — dash to
pieces the whofe frame of our republic. Sympor
thizers, Puseyites, and all other sueh bastard Prot-
estants, may think difierently. Be it so. Valueless
as my opinion may be, let it be herein recorded, that
I entirely disagree with them.

It seems that another speck of Popery is just
making its appearance on the north-west horizon of
our national firmament. It appears, by accounts
very recently received from Oregon, ihat theProp-
aganda m Rome has sent out a company o^fesuits
and nuns to that territory. Popish priests and
Jesuits seldom travel without being accompanied by
nuns : they add greatly to their comforts while on
their pilgrimage for the advancement of nuntUiiff
and chastity. Hitherto the occupants of Oregon
have advanced qnietly. They have adopted a
temporary form of government, established courts
of law, and such municif)al regulations as they
deemed best calculated to forward their common
interest. But the modern serpent, Jesuitism, has
already entered their garden : the tree of Popery
has been planted : it is now in blossom, and will
soon be seen in full bearing. It is truly a melan-
choly reflection to think that this pestj Popery,
should find access to all places and to all people.
One year will not pass over us, before the aspect
of things in Oregon will be . entirely changed.
These Jesuits who arrived there have been pre-

AS rr WAS AND AS IT IS. ^ 215

ceded by some Popish spy — some reverend Irish
Murphy, iu the capacity of carpenter^ or perhaps
horse-jockey, has gone before them, and has been
laying plans for their reception. I venture to say,
U will be discovered, at no distant day, that all the
good which our Protestant missionaries have done
there will soon be undone by Popish agents. They
will commence, as they have done in Tahiti, by
causing some panic among the resident settlers.
They will find in Oregon, as well as in our United
States, some functionary who may want their aid ;
and he, like many of the unprincipled functionaries
among ourselves, will give them hiis patronage in ex-
change.

Liberty has, in reality, but few votaries among
officeholders, in comparison with Popery ; and this
is one of the chief causes of the great advances
which the latter is making, and has been making,
especially fop the last six or eight years. Look
around you, fellow-citizens, and you will scarcely
find an individual in office, frcm the President to
the lowest office-holder, possessed of sufficient moral
courage to raise his voice against Popery. But jus-
tice to Americans requires me to say, that in this the
great mass of the people are without blame — for 1
catiBot call certain leading, unprincipled politicians,
the people. The first steps which foreign priests
and Jesuits have taken, in disturbing the harmony
of our republican system of government, might have
been easily checked ; but those who have repre-
sented the people, and who held offices of honor
and emolument, were not, and will not be, disturb-
ed by a moment's reflection on a proper sense of
their duty. The whole responsibility of the gross
outrages offered to our Protestant country, by Popish
priests and Papal allies, rests upon our representa-
tives in Congress. They could, if Ihey wouldi have

216 SYNOPSIS OF POPERr,

long since checked Popery ; and it is now high
time that the people shonld take this matter intd
their own hands, and so alter the constitutions of
their respective states, as to exclude Papists from
any positive or negative participation in the creation
or execution of their laws.

Jesuits calculate with great accuracy upon the
selfishness of man : they know that, generally
speaking, it is paramount to all other considerations.
Artful, intriguing, avaricious, and more licentious
themselves than any other body of men in the
world, they soon discover all that is vulnerable ia
the American character, and take advantage of it.
They discover that popular applause is greatly
coveted by Americans j and this is the reason why
we see established among us so many repeal asso-
ciations. The writer understands that several of
those associations are now formed in Oregon ; and it
was at their request that the Pope had sent ont
Jesuits and nuns amongst theju. Repeal is looked
upon as the great lever by which the whole political
world can be turned upside down. Its members,
meet in large numbers, in order to show the gullible
Americans the consequent extent of their power,
and the great advantage which some officehunter
may gain by bringing them over to his views.« The
bait has taken well hitherto ; but as we have — sol-
emnly attested by the sign manual of the Pope him-
self — seen his object in causing to be established
repeal societies, the American, who continues here-
after to encourage them, deserves the execration of
every lover of freedom. The Pope tells Americans,
through his agent, O'Connell, what the design and
objects of all the movements of Papists in the
United States are ; and I tnist, when Americans
see them in their true colors, they will sink dee{>ly
into their hearts.

AS IT WAS AND AS IT IS. 2lt

-flnto, then, I entreat you, Americans) the lan^
guagie of O'Connell, as the Pope's agent,* as uttered
by him in the Loyal National Repeal Association in
Dublin, Ireland. It is addressed to Irish Catholics
in' the United States^. Where you have the electoral
franchise^ give your votes to none but those who
will assist you in so holy a struggle. You should
do all in your power to carry out the pious intent
tions of his holiness the Pope. This is plain lan-
guage ; there is no misunderstanding it. -It is ad-
dressed to Papists, whether in Oregon or the United
States, and what are the pious intentions .of the
Pope ? I will tell you. I understand those matters
probably better than you do. The object is, in the
first place, to extirpate Protestantism ; and, secondly,
io overthrow this republican government^ and
place in our executive chair a Popish king. This
is the sole design (5f all the ramifications of the va-
rious repeal clubs throughout the length and breadth
of the United States and its territories. O'Con-
nell — the greatest lay mail living — is the nuncio of
the Pope for carrying this vast and holy design into
execution. Will Americans submit to this ? Will
they again attend repeal associations ? Does . not
every meeting of the repeal party impliedly make
an assault upon our constitution ? Is not this for-
eign demagogue endeavoring to pollute our ballot-
box ? and will you any longer trust an Irish Papist,
who is the fettered slave of the Pope ? Aye ! a
greater slave than the African, the Mussulman, or
the Chinese. Never before was there such a com-
bination formed for the destruction of American
liberty, as that of Irish repealers^ and never before
was such an insidious attempt made to pollute the
morals of the wives and daughters of Americans, as
that which Jesuits have for years made, and are

19

218 SYNOPSIS OF POPERT,

now making, by the introduction of priests andfttfii^
neries amofig them. '^^^^

Repeal unchains thei loud blasts of conspiracy,
and opens the bloody gates of sedition ; yet this Re-
peal lives in the very midst of us. I can almost
hear, while I am writing these lines, the witd
shouts of its lawless members ; and to the shame
and everlasting disgrace of Americans, the sons of
free and noble sires, there are many of them, at
the very repeal meetings to which I allude, aiding
and abetting them in aiming thiir mad and wild
blows at liberty, while she sleeps sweetly, perhaps
dro^ming that she was safe, with the spirits of
Washington, Warren, and others, watching over her
slumbers. Sleep on, fair goddess ! Popish traitors
cannot, shall not disturb thee. American RepiSbli-
cans will not let them ; and to you, Protestant for- •
eigners, I would most earnestly appeal. Let us
stand by those noble patriots. We know what tyr- ,
anny is ! We felt many of its pains and penalties.
We know what Popery is ! It has desolated our na-
tive land ! It has made barren our fairest fields! It
has sealed up from our parents, our brothers, sisters,
and relatives, the eternal fountain of life ! It is
drunk with the blood of the saints ! It has closed
against us the gates of liberty ! It has rendered us
strangers to its blessings, and it was not until we
landed upon these shores, that we were first per- -
mitted to inhale its fragrance or ^ taste its fruits.
But now that we enjoy all these blessings, let us
thank God for them. Let us be grateful to Ameri-
cans for receiving us among them, and prove by our
deeds that we are not unworthy of the kind and
hospitable reception which they gave us, by being
foremost amongst them in resisting and warding off
the blows which that enemy of mankind, the Pope,

AS IT WAS AND AS IT IS. 219

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ttttdjtili fonUmouthed nuncio, Daniel O'Connell,
•Itis Irish repealers, are striking at American
[bm ! They shall not succeed. The slaves of

a Pope cannot succeed.

** The sensual and the dark rebel in vain,
Slaves by their own compulsion ! In mad game
Thev burst their manacles, and wear the name
Of freedom, graven on a heavier chain. ,

O Liberty ! with profitless endeavor
• Have I pursued thee many a weary hour ; —
But thou nor swell'st the victor's strain, nor ever
Didst breathe thy sq|il in forms of human power.
Alike from all, howe*er they praise thee —
Nor prayer, nor boastful name -delays thee —
Alike from priestcraft's harpy minions.
And factious blasphemy's obscener slaves,
Thou speedest on thy subtle pinions,
The guide of homeless winds, and playmate of the waves!
^ d there I felt thee ! — on that sea-cfifTs verge,
Wnose pines, scarce travelled by the breeze alK)ve,
Had made one murmur with the distant surge ; —
Yea, while I stood and gazed, my temples bare,
And shot my being through earth, sea, and air,
P6ssessing all thin^ with intensest love,
O Liberty ! my spirit felt thee there 1 "

^